


Sorry, Wrong Number

by KrisKris



Category: Watch Dogs (Video Games)
Genre: Aiden Pearce deserves more love, Aiden is important to me okay?, Comedy (kinda), F/M, Female Reader, One Shot Fic, Reader Insert, Romance, Slow Burn, non-canon characters - Freeform, non-canon names used, parody names, rated T because language, vigilante in the streets daddy in the sheets lol just kidding but why not right?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-24
Updated: 2017-01-24
Packaged: 2018-09-19 15:49:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 26,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9448844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KrisKris/pseuds/KrisKris
Summary: A would-be series of one-shots of your relationship with a certain vigilante.





	1. Have You Seen My Phone?

You were on your way to see a friend downtown and got off the L-Train. You were going to meet up at the other side of town to your favorite café. You head down the stairs and onto the sidewalk to the intersection. As soon as your feet touch the pavement, you jump from the loud collision to people screaming and cars rear-ending one another to a point where you weren't sure who was to blame. This was no surprise to you as this was a common occurrence in Chicago right next to crime and the mysterious, masked man whom you were sure was driving away from the scene in a red (probably stolen) Sedan.

"Hooray for Chicago drivers." sighed a nearby pedestrian, shaking his head.

Sudden blackouts and compromised traffic lights happened more frequently at the same time the vigilante appeared and you had a feeling he had something to do with it but you didn't want to make assumptions as they were probably coincidental. You made your way down the street, careful of the accident as you proceeded. You ran to catch the bus and barely made it as it reached the stop. You paid the fare and stood by the door when you notice the bus was unusually crowded for a weekday. The increase in car accidents was ridiculous, did people really drive this bad or did the vigilante have something to do with this?

 

====

 

You made sure to check your belongings before getting off the bus after reaching your stop. The café was within walking distance and you didn't mind having to walk the whole way there. Feeling the wind in your hair, seeing people stroll down whether it be walking the dog or with a friend, it was relaxing, almost. Your phone gave the notification of a text and you were so eager to read it. You saw that it was a Snapchat from your best friend who decided to go ahead and order without you, teasing you with a picture of a latte with an intricate design of a layered heart over the warm beverage. You looked on in envy and slightly peeved that she would order coffee without you. The sole purpose of hanging out was to drink coffee! Together! But you were thankful for social media, at least she didn't get bored waiting. You smiled and decided to look through the other chats to see what everyone else was up to. While you were busy Snapchatting, you failed to notice a man running towards you, panicked with a gun in hand. Just as you look up, you see the armed man rushing towards you. Shocked, you froze in fear as he was several feet in front of you before realizing that he was running past you. You watched as he headed down the street before climbing over a fence. It all happened so fast you didn't see the other person running towards you. You both bump into each other, your phones dropping to the floor.

You turned to glare at the person who bumped into you, only to be face-to-face with the infamous vigilante from the news. Here he was, in the flesh! He didn't notice you and quickly picked up his phone before continuing his pursuit of the frantic gunman. You knelt down to pick up your phone, grumbling about the crack you hoped didn't show up on the screen. With a sigh of relief, you slipped the phone back into your pocket. It survived another day.

 

"You really said that!?" Your friend exclaimed as you told her you quit your job. There was nothing you liked about it. When you told them you wanted to leave, they tried giving you a raise to get you to stay but you were better off doing something else. "Well, what are you going to do now?"

"I dunno," You shrug, sipping from your latte. "Find another job, I guess."

"Hey, why not work with me?" Your friend suggested. "They're actually hiring right now but it's better than nothing."

"Oh, okay. I guess I could try it."

"Let me text you the link," she said. "I can help you apply online. It's not too difficult but we could get it done faster."

"Sure." You pull out your phone only for you to pause and make a worried look as you stared at the screen.

"[Nickname]? What's wrong?"

You slowly turn to your friend with a look of utter shock and disbelief. Your face was pale as if you had seen a ghost. "This...This isn't my phone..."

"Wh-What do you mean?" she frowned. "Whose phone is it then?"

"I don't-I have no idea." You stutter, trying to figure how you have a phone that wasn't yours to begin with. You tried to recall what you did all this morning to wind up with someone else's phone. "I-Uhm, let me just..." You trailed off. The main screen setup looked rather odd but you tried your best to go through it without touching anything but then again....

"Wait, what's this?" You tapped at something on the screen and the ground rattled before you. The underground steam pipe from the street nearby exploded, smoke emitting like a huge fog below. "Uh.... uhmmm..." You push another button only for the fuse nearby to burst, startling a couple nearby.

"[Name]! What are you doing?" Your friend shouted among the noise.

"I-I don't know!" You cried. "You know what, just take it! Here!" You try to hand her the phone only to touch the screen and trip a car alarm, money from the ATM flew out of the machine, a car nearly hits the both of you as the traffic signs went out. You both scream as another car sped towards you. The driver was quick to pull on the brakes and the vehicle pulls roughly to the side with tires screeching. The fence dividing you and the driver was knocked in and the table scoots slightly.

"You know what? Why don't we use your phone?" You turn only to see your friend along with passersby picking up money the ATM left behind as money continued pouring out and you watch as she gathers the bills in her hands. " _Cat!_ "

"What?" She shouts. "It's money!"

"I am having a crisis and you're picking up money?!" You argue.

"I still have student loans!" Cat points out. Which was a really good point. Why let free money go to waste among this chaos?

After the fiasco at the café earlier, you both decided it was best not to touch anything on the phone to avoid a repeat and get into more trouble. In your apartment, both you and Cat sat across from each other in your kitchen. You were more worried about your own phone. Where could it have gone? Who has it and how did you get a different phone in return? It had been on your mind since the train ride here.

"You, uh, have any recollection of how you got the phone?" Cat wondered as you two sat in silence while you stared at the phone in front of you. You were in a more calmer environment now so you should be able to make out some detail of your day.

"I..." You began. "Well, I know I took it from the charger before I left home, I had it with me on the train and then I got on the bus," you tapped your chin in thought. "On my way here, I saw this guy holding a gun running towards me-"

"Oh my god! Are you serious?" Cat gasped. Just the thought of a gun out in the open would shock anybody. "And then what?"

"He looked scared, like he was running _away_ from someone," You explained. "I was scared at first until I bumped into the vigilante and then..." Your eyes widen at the sudden realization of what happened to your phone. "Oh my God. Cat. The vigilante... He has my phone!"

Aiden Pearce had taken out a potential criminal who pulled out a gun to settle a debt with the victim, by following him through profiling he managed to carefully tail him without being seen and hid nearby. Before the man could pull the trigger, the vigilante sprang into action and chased after him for a few blocks until he hopped the fence and turned a corner, when the man had grown tired he began slowing down, that was when Aiden was able to reach him and take him out in an isolated street corner. He put his baton away and went to look at his phone for any other potential threats until he noticed something a little odd. This wasn't his phone.

"What the hell?" He grumbled as he looked at the screen. There was a picture of a woman who looked to be in her twenties smiling at the screen. It was taken at an angle that obviously seemed like a good idea to snap a photo which didn't seem too bad he had to admit, however, he began to retrace his steps, going back moments ago to the point where his phone was switched. Then, he remembered. "That girl..."

There was an audible explosion nearby, smoke filling the air with the sound of cars colliding with one another. It sounded pretty close, he just had to follow the signs of hacking. He was sure if it were to fall in the wrong hands, things would be catastrophic. He hoped he wasn't too late. He arrived to where he guessed was the whereabouts of his phone but what he saw was surreal. People were fighting over piles of money, the ambulance and police were as confused as he was while others were running away from the chaos that was occurring before them. "Oh, shit." Immediately, Aiden used the phone and dialed a number.

 

The phone went off, you jumped when it vibrated. You would think as some sort of protagonist-type, he would have a more subtle caller tone. _He puts his phone on vibrate?_

"Who puts their phone on vibrate?" Cat echoed, as if reading your thoughts.

"Oh my God, someone's calling!" You cried. "What if it's _him_!"

"Th-There's just no way that's him." stuttered Cat. "I mean, how does he even know your number? Just answer it!"

"You sure?"

"I, w-well, I don't know!"

"Why are you stressed out?"

"Because you're stressed out and that makes me stressed out!"

"Oh my god." Your hands were shaking as you answered. You said nothing.

"Pearce, it's Jordi," the voice on the other line announced. "I don't know what you did but this guy really shat himself. So what do you wanna do with him?"

You said nothing.

"I mean it's entirely your call, I could shoot him here or what do you want?"

There was a sound of someone crying out a muffled 'no' and you instinctively opened your mouth and instantly regretting it.

"What the fuck?" You blurted out before covering your mouth.

"What?" Jordi was taken aback. Then he asked. "Wait, you're not Pearce. Who is this?"

You turn to Cat who was baffled by your outburst and didn't know what to do either. You hung up and threw the phone at the couch.

"What happened?"

"I don't know but I think that vigilante guy is into some weird shit!" You exclaimed. The phone began vibrating from under the pillows. "Now the guy won't stop calling!"

"...So you're telling me you lost your phone?" said Clara from the other line. "Don't tell me you're using a civilian's phone to contact me."

"Well, that's the problem, Clara." Aiden answered. "I think they have my phone. Think you could trace my phone's signal and see if you can find any leads?"

"I can try," Clara told him. "If we're lucky they should still be in Chicago. It might take me a while, I'll keep you updated. Can you wait till then?"

"I've got all the time I need." He hung up and looked at the picture on the phone. "And I've got my first clue."

 

====

 

You sat in the bathtub, the water was warm against your skin but you couldn't relax knowing the vigilante was out there looking for you. You glance over at the phone sitting on the toilet lid. After that 'Jordi' phone call, no one else called. You wonder what it is the vigilante does when he isn't protecting people. But besides that you managed to play some music on the phone. You caused a minor blackout earlier but you managed to find it. The man had good taste in music. You had _He Used To Be_ by The Right Now currently on repeat. You hummed along as you finished your bath, draining the water before washing up and grabbing a towel to dry off. The softness of the towel felt nice against your skin. You wrapped it around your body before heading out to your bedroom to put on some clothes. You then remembered something and sighed, covering your face. _What if he finds that ugly selfie of me on my phone?_ You thought. It took you about twenty-nine tries or more to find at least a decent one to keep to call your favorite. It was just embarrassing to imagine it being the first thing the vigilante sees when he goes through your phone.

"That would scare him away, right?" You ask yourself. "But then again, how would I get my phone back? This phone is important to him, right? There might be something here that would make him find me."

You carefully looked through the phone, glanced at some of the apps and noticed NVZN. "I didn't know he plays this, too." You mumbled. Practically everyone had this app on their phone. Other than that, you couldn't go any farther in fear you might just trigger something. You did find his photos and noticed something strange, not a single one had pictures of himself. There were a few photos of a small girl and a young boy together with a blonde woman with a ponytail. The girl in the picture strikes you as familiar. She was on the news once, Lena Pearce, dead at the age of six in a car accident. It was a sad way of remembering someone but maybe these people are the reason he fights. That fire makes you admire him a little. You're a bit worried, though. Perhaps you're falling for him? It was too early to say. You stepped out onto the balcony and decided to look at what else you can discover about this masked marauder and notice another app in his phone. It had profiling in the name but you were sure something like this didn't exist.

Curious, you took a peek at the screen and information popped up almost immediately. Clearly, this was an invasion of privacy as this was an actual person. It had their name, personal info, occupation and so on in the palm of your hand. This first entry strikes you as odd.

 _McDonald, James_  
_Self-proclaimed cowboy_  
_Age: 37_  
_Occupation: Gun store owner_  
_Income: 38,000_

You looked around to figure out where it got that information from until you look across from your own apartment to see a gruff-looking man wearing a cowboy hat and a red flannel, smoking a cigarette. Clearly, "self-proclaimed" was an understatement.

Then you looked at the balcony below his and notice an older man sporting a buzzcut with his hair pulled back into a ponytail wearing a navy blue t-shirt with the tattoo of a dragon on his left arm sitting outside, drinking tea.

 _Yamada, Haruo_  
_Sibling murdered_  
_Age: 38_

There wasn't much to make out from that but it took a darker turn than you expected. Perhaps you could find better things if you went outside. If you're lucky, you might be able to meet the vigilante and get your phone back. That's "if" you ever cross paths with him again. You decided to go out again for today just to try out this app-thing you discovered. It wasn't going to hurt anybody except maybe your pride as a respectable, human being but as long as you didn't touch anything else on the phone, you were going to be fine.

“Hey.” Clara greeted when Aiden answered the call.

“You sure took your time,” said Aiden. “Got anything?”

“Well, it wasn’t that easy,” she replied. “Not much happened except for a single phone call and that was that.”

“Play it.”

A short audio log chimed into the call. The voice on the other line was, of course, hard to miss.

_Pearce, it's Jordi. I don't know what you did but this guy really shat himself. So what do you wanna do with him?_

*silence*

_I mean it's entirely your call, I could shoot him here or what do you want?_

*muffled* _No!_

_What the fuck?_

_What? Wait, you're not Pearce. Who is this?_

*dial tone*

“What was that about?” Clara inquired when she listened to the call.

“I honestly have no idea.” the vigilante answered, shuffling his feet in awkward discomfort.

“But I have the signal now,” she added. “Earlier there was a minor blackout at The Loop district so I took the time to look into it and your phone happened to be there. The signal seems to be moving but it’s not that far off. I think you should get moving, though, if you want to catch up to them. It’s near an apartment complex.”

“Thanks.”

“You’re really wrapped up in finding that girl,” the hacker observed. “Are you sure you didn’t just do this on purpose just to find yourself a date? They have apps for that, you know.”

“No,” Aiden groaned before hanging up. “Look, I gotta go.” _They have apartment complexes all over the city. It would take me hours to find the right one and by then I don’t think I’ll be able to find it._ He thought. _Not like this._

As soon as he ended the call, the phone rang. He wasn’t sure whether or not to answer or let it go to voicemail. He looked at the caller ID and the picture of an older woman appeared into view, “Mom” was calling.

Meanwhile, you happened to be having the time of your life discovering all these odd facts and names of people you have never even met before. It was like viewing the world through different eyes, seeing what Aiden Pearce can see day after day. The thought of it intrigued you, you may have crossed paths with him some way or another and he may have known some detail about you by simply walking past you. You start to wonder if he had ever seen you just once. There were thousands of people in this city, he had been through so many names and faces he probably doesn’t even keep track. You then proceeded to do more “profiling”, according to the weird app. You see a young girl sitting in a café nearby playing on her phone. She wore a pink letterman jacket, a pair of shorts and white thigh highs with black sneakers. You peeked at the phone to look at her information.

 _Ong, Dana_  
_Recently traveled to Japan_  
_Age: 19_  
_Occupation: Professional gamer_  
_Income: 100,000_

You then see two girls seated at the table behind her. One was a blonde and the other was an older-looking brunette having a conversation about the frequent blackouts that occurred. The blonde was the first to come up and then the brunette.

 _Kessler, Sheena_  
_Currently single_  
_Age: 27_  
_Occupation: Massage therapist_  
_Income: 47,000_

 _Kessler, Lisa_  
_Tae Kwon Do blackbelt_  
_Age: 32_  
_Occupation: Personal trainer_  
_Income: 32,000_

Sisters. Both seemed to be very busy people. This wasn’t as bad as you had expected. You were about to look at more people but the moment was short-lived when the phone gave notification of a potential crime and you had grown worried, you had no idea what to do. Where was it? Several more notifications come up and they were fixer contracts. What were fixers? Gang hangouts were another. _What?_ Just what was the vigilante putting himself through? Questions filled your mind as guilt washed over you. Is this also what he does? The responsibility of keeping people safe felt heavy you could almost feel it. It must be lonely, taking on an entire city on your own. All of a sudden, you wanted to go home. You slipped the phone into your pocket and headed back to your apartment. Little did you know, you were being followed.

Aiden rushed in on a motorcycle with time to spare, glancing at the phone every so often to find the girl who had his smartphone. He almost ran into a vehicle if they didn’t brake in time. Aggravated, the driver stuck his head out the window and shouted, “Hey! I know you’re the vigilante and all, but some of us have lives, too!”

“Yeah! Sorry!” Aiden shouted back as he crossed the street. _If anything, I’m the one who should be angry here._

“Yeah, thanks a lot, buddy! I just missed my turn!”

“Oh, shut up already!” The driver behind him scowled.

Aiden shook his head and reached a café nearby, almost immediately customers and passersby alike were in awe that the vigilante was standing right before them, murmuring amongst themselves.

“It’s the vigilante from the news, I’m sure of it!”

“Hey, it’s ‘the Fox’!”

“That’s the guy the cops are after!”

He then spotted a woman with [color] hair walking down just several feet ahead of him, seeing a conspicuous-looking man strolling after her and she didn’t even notice. _I better get to her before it’s too late._ he thought before quietly following behind.

You took a shortcut through the alley. You always took this way a lot faster than crossing the street or trekking through the sidewalks, walking behind people were just as bad as the drivers as they walked slower than the cars can speed up. It was a lot calmer than the busy streets. Your mother stressed out over how you always went through the alleys even at night. Going through the same alleyway every now and then didn’t cause much trouble for you until now.

As you neared the building to your apartment, you felt someone was behind you. You didn’t sense it at first but now that you’ve made it home, the sense of uneasiness made your skin crawl. You refused to acknowledge it but it was too late. The uneasiness got worse when you heard a male voice call out to you. “Hey, beautiful!” The man greeted you. You felt like wanting to barf. “How are you doing?”

Of course, you were lucky it wasn’t by name but you hated when random guys decided to hit on you whenever they felt like it. It was uncomfortable and you wished someone would intervene. By appearance alone, he was bad news. Crimes were a commonplace in this city but you didn’t expect to become a victim in this circumstance. You wished he would just leave you alone. It seems he didn’t have a clue of what boundaries were.

“What do you want?” You scowled, trying to sound threatening but you were actually afraid. You hoped your voice didn’t crack. Men like him could smell fear.

“I just want to hang out,” the man insisted. “Just a few minutes of your time.”

“No, thank you,” You said quickly. “I’m busy right now.”

The man slammed his hand against the wall, close to your head. It looks like he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. You didn’t like how close he was, you were half-tempted to push him away but that would probably anger him and that wasn’t something you wanted right now. Your eyes dart to the corner of the alleyway, noticing someone peeking from the side. The lights were dim but you knew the vigilante was silently waiting for the man to make another move before springing into action. He hid when the man noticed your gaze.

“I-I think you should start running,” You advised, keeping his attention on you. “Because you’re in a really bad spot right now.”

“And why’s that?” The man mused, calling your bluff. You didn’t like that he was onto you. Quickly, you thought of an excuse that would get him away or for the vigilante to move in.

“I’m… friends with the vigilante!” You proclaim confidently. It sounded unbelievable coming out of your mouth, thinking maybe he was laughing at you for lying like that. The vigilante even had no idea who you were. The man laughed. Yep, definitely calling your bluff and he could see right through one of the biggest lies he had ever heard. Friends with the vigilante! You were afraid of what was to happen next. What was taking so long for him to rescue you? This was wrong! Maybe you shouldn’t have taken the alley as a shortcut home anymore. This was crime, a filthy, disgusting crime that you helped cause on yourself and you hated it.

“Oh, are you?” The man laughed as he pushed you against the wall, his hand on your shoulder with a knife drawn towards your neck. “Where’s your vigilante friend now?”

“Right here.” A deep voice answered. And before either of you could react, the man was down on the ground being beaten by a baton. You had the right mindset to back up but you fell over in the process. The vigilante had finally arrived to your aid. The trademark cap and trenchcoat were hard to miss.

Aiden slipped his baton back inside his coat pocket and turned to you. His gaze was threatening at first glance but seeing as how he had saved you, you felt safe now. It was almost intimate but you were somehow lost in his eyes. They were green, deep as the ocean and you swore you were going to drift away by simply gazing into them. His eyes held a strong gaze, powerful yet compassionate. It was as if he was looking directly into your soul, finding out every little detail about you, remembering your face along the way. He knelt down and offered his hand to help you up as you remained seated on the floor. You obliged, taking his hand and standing with his help. His hand was pleasantly warm to the touch.

“Thanks.” You breathed, the uneasiness disappeared the same way it had come. The both of you stood in complete silence, thinking of what to say to the other. There was one way of breaking the ice and that was mentioning the phone but you were a nervous wreck, trying to recover from what happened just now. Another crime was prevented thanks to the vigilante.

“You have my phone.” You both stated then you avoided eye contact before slipping your hand into your jacket pocket, holding out his phone towards him.

“I, uhm, I might have had a little too much fun with it today.” You joked as he handed your phone back to you.

“I’ve noticed,” Aiden teased. “I’m going to go out on a limb here and ask, did you look through anything while you had my phone?”

“No, I didn’t,” You lied. “Every push of a button was something new so I didn’t venture too much. So, if you had my phone, why didn’t you at least call it?”

“It was too easy,” He confessed. “I wouldn’t have minded meeting up but I trust you wouldn’t have wanted to meet somewhere isolated?”

“That... Yeah, probably.” You mumbled. “Oh, yeah, you might want to call Jordi back.”

“Guess that makes us even now.” He teased with a smile.

“Wh-What do you mean?” You ask as he turns to leave. “Where are you going?”

“I’ll be seeing you, [Name].” Aiden chuckled as he glanced down at his phone, your profile was open for him to see.

 _[Last, First]_  
_Currently unemployed_  
_Age: 28_

“Feels good to be back.” You both mumbled, glancing down at your phones.

Your phone gave the notification of a text, it was from ‘Aiden’. Curious, you read the text only to be completely thrown off. Just what did he think he was doing?

_We have a lunch date with your mom next week. I’ll try to dress more subtle for you._

“Are you serious?” You gaped. How did he accomplish something like that?

 

As soon as you read that, your mom called.


	2. Thanks, Mom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aiden meets your mother for the first time. Good luck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This should have been posted on Valentine's Day but I'm bad at keeping up with deadlines but here it is, anyway. The idea behind this chapter was a suggestion by laptop101 that made this happen. Thank you! :)
> 
>  
> 
> *[M/N] - Mother's Name

After filling out several job applications, physically and online, you had some extra time to yourself. It was a long process of applying for the job Cat offered you that it took almost all morning, it was close to noon now and you were sitting in your apartment thinking of what to do. You glanced at the game console sitting below your television set, picked up the gamepad and took a seat on the couch playing _Assassin’s Creed_ for the rest of the day doing some free roaming in search of chests and whatever you could scourge before one hour later you decided to go through with a memory sequence. It was at the most crucial time that you had to have utmost concentration, someone decided to call you.

With an exasperated sigh, you briefly pause the game to retrieve your phone from the coffee table and see that your mother was calling. It was at this point that you would rather let it continue ringing and resume playing but somehow you had a feeling this was going to involve Aiden so you put the call on speaker before going back to your game.

“Hey, mom!” You greeted, moving your character around to sneak past enemy npcs while trying to listen to what your mom had to say.

“Hi, sweetie!” she answered cheerfully. “Is Aiden there?”

“Uh....” A yellow ring appeared around the assassin as if spotted and you tried your best to draw their attention away by swiftly moving aside into a hiding spot. “No, he’s… actually busy.” You lied. “He won’t be back until later. Why do you ask?”

“Well, you know how I said he and I planned a lunch date with you today, right?” she asked.

“Uh-huh.” Your character was immediately spotted, the red ring indicating that now was the time to engage in combat. It appears you failed the challenge as the objective blinked red and you were reduced to fighting the enemies surrounding your character before using a smoke bomb to take down the primary target then moving into a cutscene.

“Well, I called to make a reservation at the restaurant the other day and they told me they were booked until six o’clock.” Your mother explained.

“Booked? For what?” You wondered, trying to listen to your mom as well as the dialogue from the game as your character spoke to the dying Templar before them.

“A wedding anniversary party, can you believe that?” she scoffed. “Really? Why spend money on a luncheon when you can go to Paris on your anniversary? That makes no sense to me!”

You watch as the assassin pull out a blood-soaked handkerchief once the Templar lay dead after his fair share of a few words before the assassin swiped fresh blood from the open wound, slipping the handkerchief back into their coat pocket. “So… what are we going to do now?”

“I had no choice but to reserve it after the party,” your mom replied. “So can you let Aiden know it’s at eight?”

“Sure, when I see him.” You said, finishing the memory sequence and returned to the very area you were standing in to kill the rest of the enemies before fleeing.

“How is he, by the way?” This was a question you never expected her to ask. You hadn’t heard from him since you got your phone back. Even you were curious of his well-being. He was still on the news, that much you knew.

“Oh, he’s doing fine.” You lied again, toggling with the analog stick to move your character around. “Just out and about.”

“Tell him hi for me,” Your mom said. “I miss you.”

“I miss you, too, mom.” You smiled. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Bye!” She hung up.

You put the phone down and noticed the camera was facing your character, appearing to make it seem as if they were looking at you. “Oh, don’t look at me like that!” you snapped, turning your character away. “It’s not like I’m hurting her by lying like this. What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her, right?” Silence was the only appropriate response you were given before searching for chests once more.

As the assassin jumped and climbed with your controls, they reached an open window and slipped inside. Almost simultaneously as your character jumped in from the window ledge, Aiden jumped into your living room through the window causing you to yelp in surprise. “Holy shit!” You cursed, noticing that Aiden and the assassin were standing in the same place. You paused the game to avoid looking at the strange standing pose they were both doing. “Hi, again.”

“Hey.” he greeted. “What are you doing?”

“Just playing a game,” you answered. “How did you find me, anyway?” You moved to make room for him to sit on the couch.

“I traced your phone’s signal and it led me here.” he simply stated.

“You really need to start calling me so I know you’re coming.”

He chuckled, making your heart skip a beat. Just what was it about him that made you feel this way? “Sorry,” He apologized. “I’ll try to call next time.”

“By the way, change of plans.” You told him. “Lunch is now a dinner date.”

“Hmm.” Aiden seemed pleasantly surprised. “That’s a shame, how’d that happen?”

“Apparently, the restaurant is reserved for a wedding anniversary party for the entire afternoon until evening.” You explained. “It’s at eight now and my mom says ‘hi’, by the way.”

“Well, ‘hi’ back, I guess.” he mused before standing up and stepping towards the window, making his exit. “I’ll see you at eight, then?”

“Quick question,” You insisted. “Why did you come here for?”

“Just felt like paying you visit.” he shrugged, smiling as he sat on the window ledge. “How’s the job search coming along?”

“It’s getting there,” You sighed. “At least, I think it is.”

“Good luck, [Name].” He added upon holding up his phone. “Maybe I could put in a good word for you, if you catch my drift?”

You laughed. “Thanks, but I think I’ll do this my way.”

“Suit yourself.” He acknowledged before stepping out the window. “See you at eight?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you.” You were going to continue with the game but you were curious as to how he got up here until you heard mechanical whirring from outside and went to take a peek. Aiden was standing on a forklift descending to the first floor, his eyes glued to his phone. Once the forklift was nearly halfway to ground level, the vigilante jumped off and did a roll before rushing out of the alleyway then hopped inside a car and drove away.

“I swear that car is stolen.” You mutter to yourself before continuing with your game.

 

=====

 

It was around six in the evening, Aiden was still clad in his vigilante outfit when he entered your apartment building. He had just finished a fixer contract in which he had stolen a car for a client nearby, the cops were still on his tail but he managed to evade them without causing too much damage. However, one civilian was going to be in crutches for a while. He looked around and noticed your apartment was empty.

 _Where did she go?_ he thought as he looked around, hoping nothing had happened to you.

“[Name]? You here?” Aiden called out. Still no response. “Hmm. I’m going inside!” He announced as he ventured further. There wasn’t much to see except for maybe a few fandom merchandises here and there, the kitchen and living room were in one place, all that was left to check was the bedroom. He stepped inside only to see you walk out the bathroom wearing nothing but your undergarments.

“Uhm.” He stuttered, not sure how to react in this situation after seeing a woman half-naked before him even though it had been a while since he _had_ seen a woman in something similar to this. You and him made eye contact as soon as you saw each other. You almost screamed until you realized who was standing in front of you.

“Jesus!” You screeched, rushing back into the bathroom and slamming the door behind you. “Aiden, we talked about this! Why didn’t you call me?!”

“I called you three times and you never answered any of them!” He shouted.

“Sorry! I was in the shower!” You cried, heat rushing into your cheeks after such an embarrassing encounter. “I would have called back!”

He approached the door and softly, he spoke. “Sorry,” he chided. “I thought something had happened to you.”

You were leaning against the door frame, listening to the soft tone of his voice. The thought of him worried about you touched your heart. How could anyone like him be seen as a criminal? It was at that moment, you might start to like him a little. “Aiden…” You sighed. “I didn’t know you were like this.”

“Sorry,” he apologized again. “I’ll try to remember to call next time, okay? I’ll be outside your living room waiting for you.”

“Okay.” You waited until the footsteps faded out into the other room before going out to get changed. You remained standing in your bathroom, embarrassed at what happened just now. Aiden saw you wearing next to nothing, the mismatched underwear and everything else that was exposed, the certain physical features that made you insecure… he saw it all. You tried to shake it off but the thought of him seeing you so vulnerable left an impression. It took you a moment but you finally collected your thoughts and went on with getting dressed.

Aiden was sitting on your couch watching something on his phone. Has he ever heard of earphones? The thick, Filipino accent was familiar and you knew it fairly well. It was your neighbor downstairs and it seems she was watching the news. You stepped in to hear a bit of the conversation.

“The vigilante is still at large!” An Asian woman’s voice marveled as she read the news headlines. “She is the criminal! Look! Hoy!”

“Yeah! I know! He’s _always_ on the news, mom!” A teenager grumbled. “It’s the same thing you always watch, why do you even care?”

The woman didn’t appreciate the back talk and threatened her child with a phrase in her native language. “ _Talking to me like that, who are you?_ ”

The conversation ended short when Aiden closed out the video or at least you thought it was. You approached him and asked. “What even was that? What did she say?”

“I have no idea,” he replied. “I just do this to pass the time.”

“That was my neighbor, wasn’t it?” You questioned. “Were you spying on my neighbor just now?”

Aiden wore a puzzled expression. “You know her?”

“Well, yeah, that’s Rose,” you explained. “She and her sons live downstairs from me. She tends to give me food or have her kids drop it off. She knows I live alone, so she looks out for me.”

“Guess that means my work here is done.” he joked. “You’ve got all the protection you need.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” You laughed. “I thought you were the vigilante, didn’t you save my life before?”

“And I’d probably do it again.” The husky tone of his voice and the way a smile curled at the corner of his lips made you come to the conclusion that he was obviously flirting with you.

“You’re such a romantic.” you teased, pulling his cap over his eyes.

Aiden laughed wholeheartedly, it was a whole new experience seeing the vigilante in a different light. The way the news described him because of his deeds sounded almost artificial. As media usually did, looking through his rugged exterior and observed his actions, being rather biased about details instead of who he actually was. He must have been good at masking his personality, no one knows what his intentions are or if he was a hero or villain. Just what goes on in that head of his? You glanced over at his outfit and made the looked of utter confusion.

“Are you really going to show up in this?” You pointed at his clothes. There was no way that date would go well if the vigilante showed up in the restaurant. You can only imagine the look on your mom’s face when she sees him. Then again, you weren’t sure how she’d react to begin with. She only ever mentioned Aiden once in a conversation long before you met him. How this would play out, you were uncertain.

“I’ve got something to take care of first then I’ll join you.” he replied. “I, uh, gotta do a favor for Jordi.”

“Oh my god.” You felt your heart drop to the floor at the mention of Jordi. What had become of the man at the end of the call? Who the hell was Jordi, anyway?

“You alright?”

“Yeah, I think.” You sighed, running a hand through your hair.

 _Shit._ cursed Aiden. _I forgot she met Jordi at a bad time. Is she upset in fear that I might be late or was it because it was Jordi?_

Aiden’s brows furrowed in concern. He didn’t like to see you in such distress. This was Jordi he was talking about, the man’s antics were unorthodox and seemed to have left an impression on you. “If you want, I can try to talk to him-”

“No, really, it’s fine.” You reassured him. “It must be important for him to ask for help.”

“Trust me,” he snorted. “When he asks for help it’s anything but important.”

“I’m sure it is, Aiden.”

“You don’t believe me, do you?”

“I mean, if he needs help trying to hide a body, I can’t stop him.” You shrugged. “Just don’t be late.”

“I’ll be there.”

“Don’t think you can flirt your way out of this one.”

“Flirting?” He teased. “I don’t recall making those advances. I’m sure you’re imagining it. I’d say you want me to flirt with you.”

Your cheeks grew light pink at his speculation, this was making you flustered and he knew it. It didn’t involve any hacking for him to play around with your emotions. He seemed to be enjoying it from the look on his face. “In your dreams!” With a roll of your eyes, you threw a pillow at him and it bounced off into the opposite side of the room as he flinched.

He laughed. “I better go.” Aiden was quite expressive when he was around you. Just his mere presence was enough to give you a sense of comfort and security by simply being near him and the thought of him leaving made you feel a bit sad but maybe it was better off this way. He was the vigilante and you were a civilian living your ordinary life, two completely different people. Why he chose to spend some of his time with you, you had no idea. He sat on the window ledge about to step out when you asked: “Is there a reason you like hanging around me?”

Aiden glanced down at the floor, unsure of how to answer but at the same time seeming to find one. He turned to meet your eyes again and shook his head. “I just wanted to see you.”

His words tugged at your heartstrings, your knees almost gave way as they grew weak while butterflies fluttered about in your stomach. You had never felt this way in such a long time. After a bad falling out with your last relationship, it was hard trying to get back on your own two feet again. The comforting support of Cat and your mother helped you get past it. Could it be that Aiden brought it all back? _It can’t be._ You thought. _Maybe I am just imagining it._

You knew how he made you feel. But it didn’t seem enough for it to be true. Perhaps this date would be a long night and you had to brace yourself for it. Your mom was an oddball so her stories of a stay-home mom would distract you from your potential crush on Aiden Pearce.

 

=====

 

It was about seven-thirty on the dot when you left home. You took a cab down to the restaurant where your mom planned to meet up and waited. The drive down wasn’t too bad this time around and the lack of accidents made up for the long ride. You paid the driver and waited for your mother on the curb by the restaurant to find that she wasn’t there before you. She was always the first to arrive and to think she was running late was unusual but most likely. You waited for at least five minutes before deciding to call your mother to let her know you arrived but she didn’t answer any of your calls. After a moment, you decided to call her once more only to hear the voicemail. A wave of anxiety shot through every nerve of your brain and you thought only of the worst.

“Mom, oh my god. Where are you?” You looked through your contacts and called Aiden in a panicked fit.

 

=====

 

Aiden had just finished taking care of a little job for Jordi and checked the time; it was close to eight. “Aww, fuck, Jordi! You said this wouldn’t take more than ten minutes!” he snapped.

“That depends on how long it takes for you to get it done,” Jordi boasted. Aiden’s complaints were nothing new to him, but this time it sounded a lot more urgent than his usual rants and came to a conclusion. “You know, you don’t usually complain like this. Are you late for a date or somethin’?”

Aiden got quiet for a moment. “I’m not gonna answer that.”

“It’s that girl, isn’t it?”

“Watch it, Jordi.” Aiden warned.

“Hey, why are you on the defensive?” The fixer questioned. “I was only making a guess but since you replied in such a way, I’d say you guys have a thing for each other.”

“I just…” Aiden sighed in defeat. “I’m doing her a favor.”

“Ohh.” This piqued Jordi’s interest. “So, you’re banging? You can tell me, Pearce, I won’t judge.”

“It’s nothing like that, I’m only watching out for her.”

“Yeah and when she rides your cock that means she’s being courteous.” Jordi replied, sarcastically. “I’ve heard it all before.”

“Whatever you want to think. I’m running late, I don’t have time for this.” Aiden scowled as he jumped into a car and drove down the street. He sped down through the intersection until he got a call. “Yeah?”

“Aiden, I don’t know what to do!” Your voice shook on the other line and he grew fearful for your safety.

“[Name], what’s wrong? Where are you?”

“I’m at the restaurant but my mom isn’t here and she hasn’t answered any of my calls,” You explained through the distress in your voice. “I-I don’t know what to do, I’m freaking out right now, Aiden. Help me!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll try to find her.”

“Aiden, please, just hurry!”

“Everything’ll be fine, okay? I’ll keep an eye out.” He reassured you. “I gotta go.”

Not a moment too soon, a car sped off through the intersection running a red light. Unfortunately, he had cars surrounding him in his lane. The idea of driving through traffic and chasing after the car wasn’t the way to go. However, he traced the signal of your mother’s phone and it happened to be in that car. Soon after, two police cars followed behind with sirens blaring in the distance. He assumed her car was hijacked. Instinctively, he drove into the opposite lane facing oncoming traffic, following the cop cars far behind the stolen vehicle. He pulled his mask over his face as he drove past the police car, catching up to the white twingo and driving alongside it.

The man behind the wheel turned his head and spotted the vigilante on the passenger side all the while keeping a poor woman at gunpoint. Aiden immediately recognized the woman who turned out to be your mother. The rush of anger made his blood boil at the sight of her distress. If he didn’t do anything now, the man would get away with it. The vigilante hit the gas and started to ram the car on its side, pushing the criminal off the road to stop him while trying not to harm your mother in the process. He did this several times before a truck came into view and turned to the opposite end of the lane in which the hijacked car made its escape towards the open intersection, Aiden took this opportunity to hack the streetlights and the driver’s side was struck with a head-on collision. He stopped the car he was driving and quickly rushed to the demolished twingo, opening the door for her to make a getaway. “Get out, go! Now!” He ordered as she quickly got out the car.

“Thank you!” She sobbed, clutching her purse close to her chest as she ran away while the sirens inched closer. Aiden ran off to the other side of the street while the police closed in to investigate the accident.

“Now to undergo a new identity for the night.” Aiden proposed as he slipped off the mask and redirected his gaze to a lone sports car parked on the curb. “That’ll work.”

 

Aiden had his phone out, profiler open, narrowing down to a list of names of every passerby he spotted until a familiar surname popped up. He saw your mother walking down the street, out of breath with eyes red and puffy from crying. He felt a pang of guilt after remembering he had rammed her car to throw the thief off the road. He wasn’t sure if that was fear or relief in her eyes. He pulled up beside her and called her by name.

“Aiden?” She sniffed, wiping away her tears.

“A-Are you alright?” He acted worried which indeed he was. She didn’t appear to be injured but he had to make sure she was fine. “What happened?” He asked as he led her to the car.

“You will not believe this!” She wailed as she sat down and the two clipped their seat belts on before Aiden drove out into the street. “I don’t think [Name] would believe this! Oh my god, [Name]! I need to call her!” She exclaimed as she fished for her phone in her purse.

“She’s fine, [M/N],” Aiden said softly to comfort her. “She asked me to come find you and I see you like this. I-I don’t know how to explain this to her.”

“I’m still going to call her.” Your mom declared as she took hold of her phone.

 

You were explaining the situation to the host inside the restaurant, you were sure you were babbling as the host listened to your story before looking up to see your mother and Aiden make their entrance. “Mom!” You cried before rushing into her arms. “You’re okay!”

“I’m fine, sweetie.” Your mom chuckled as she hugged you. “I have a lot to tell you two, let me get our table!” She turned her attention to the host and the two exchanged a few words.

You turned to Aiden, giving him an inquisitive look. “You, Aiden Pearce, are amazing.”

“Now you’re just giving me too much credit.” He smirked. Your heart raced at the thought of kissing him by the look on his face but you didn’t dare take the risk.

It took you a moment to notice he wasn’t wearing a trenchcoat or a hat. His appearance was almost unrecognizable at first glance. He was quite good-looking which took you by surprise. The only obvious detail was that he didn’t shave, every bit of stubble was clearly visible.

“You didn’t shave…” You noted with your hands on either side of his face.

“I didn’t have time.” He answered simply.

“I’m surprised you’re able to make any time for me.”

“Well, that’s because you’re special.”

You raised a brow in speculation which led to some questions. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Aiden said nothing and smiled as he gazed into your [color] eyes, gently placing a hand over your own. You smiled, gently pressing his cheeks close together to a point where his lips puckered and he asked, “What are you doing?” Instead of replying, you burst out laughing as you watched his lips move.

“I see you two are having a lot of fun.” Your mother teased as she watched the two of you interact.

You felt the heat rise to your cheeks and removed your hands away from his face before the three of you followed the host to your table.

 

During the course of the meal, your mother mentioned her close encounter with the vigilante. Aiden, who was there at the time, acted surprised as if this was something unexpected.

“I was just sitting there at the light when suddenly this man from down the street runs up to the car,” she explained. “It was just my luck when he knocks on the window and he tells me to move over.” She recalls the anger in his voice when he demanded she sit in the passenger seat before pulling out a gun to her face.

“I-I was scared so I just moved for him and I didn’t say anything while he ran through all the red lights,” she continued. “It wasn’t until I heard police sirens behind us. I couldn’t turn around because if I did, he would have shot me… or worse. I didn’t know what to do! While I was too busy panicking, I thought I was seeing things when I saw the vigilante pull up beside the car. He must’ve been trying to stop the driver because he kept ramming the car. I might have been screaming the entire time that happened so I don’t know how he did it.” She took a sip of her drink before continuing. “Then the car ran into a truck, that was when the vigilante showed up and got me out. Call it coincidence but I saw Aiden a few minutes after.”

“Yeah, I’m sure it was only a coincidence.” You agreed, your gaze turning to Aiden as he simply shrugged with a smile.

“If you’re going to kiss, do that when I’m not here,” Your mom teased as she noticed the two of you exchanged glances.

“Mom, it’s not like that! Oh my god!” You laughed, lightly pushing her shoulder.

“Okay, okay!” She chuckled and proceeded to move on to a different subject. “Oh, Aiden, I need to show you some pictures of [Name] when she was in high school!”

“Can we not?” You groaned as you buried your face in your hands while she leafed through an old envelope that had pictures of your younger self from childhood up until high school. You attempted to snatch the envelope but your mom caught you and swatted your hand.

“You can see it again after I show Aiden.” she snapped.

“Mooomm! Why?!” You whined, watching as Aiden took hold of the old pictures and snickered when he saw a certain one.

“What is this?” He chuckled, seeing your fifteen-year-old self dressed in all black with awfully applied makeup that made you cringe at the sight of it. The younger you had wild hair, clad in black with fishnets and black lipstick and the occasional purple accessory or two. She was almost unrecognizable if it weren't for the eyes that resembled your mother's.

“Oh my God!” You cried out, causing the other guests to turn and look at your table. “Sorry…”

“You don’t look… _that_ bad.” Aiden hesitated to comment.

“It’s bad, I know. Don’t need to sugar coat it.” You sighed exasperatedly only to hear such an unexpected answer.

“I never took you for a goth,” he said. “But, I dunno. It’s kinda cute. Odd but cute.”

“I feel like you’re lying to make me feel better.” You replied in disbelief. He took you by surprise when he leaned in to kiss your forehead.

“And why would I do that?” He asked, running his hands through your hair. “I’ve never lied to you before. I’m pretty sure if I said I was the vigilante you’d probably believe me.”

You brushed his hand away lightly. “That’s rich.” You scoffed, unamused by his antics. However, the tender touch of his hand felt nice against your hair. It felt weird how he would treat you so sweetly like this. Maybe he was merely putting on a show to impress your mom. That was probably all it was or so you thought. Could you be imagining it or did Aiden have a soft spot for you, too? “That’s about the only thing I won’t believe.”

“Do you think the vigilante ever voted?” Your mom suddenly asked while she took a sip of her glass.

“Well, he looks like a U.S. citizen.” explained Aiden. “I’m sure he does. He might be in disguise so no one would recognize him.”

“I wonder what his opinion is on Rupert Maximilian.” Your mom pondered.

“He’s an egotistical, money-hungry racist. I doubt the vigilante gave his vote,” Aiden answered.

“The vigilante better have voted for him.” One of the guests remarked, overhearing the conversation with a shit-eating grin on his face.

“And why is that?” Your mother turned to face the man.

“Mom, don’t.” You warned her, knowing she would cause a scene when someone pissed her off in public. “Aiden, do something…” You whispered to him.

“Let’s just see how this plays out.” He told you, wanting to see what would happen next before stepping in.

“I want you to explain to me why the vigilante would vote for him,” Your mother demanded. “Why did _you_ vote for him?”

“He promises to stop crime and put the vigilante behind bars!” the man explained.

“And so did ctOS, look where that got them!” She argued. “The Fox is doing more work than the police are! Crime rates have gone down in Chicago since he appeared and I support everything he does so my daughter and every other person can go home safely at night. That Rupert is blowing smoke up media’s ass while he laughs all the way to the bank.”

“He claims to make changes to the Ward district--”

“ _Only_ the Ward district?” She echoed. “Specifically, that area? Name one thing that doesn’t include the black community.”

The man was taken aback by her response. It seems she had expected him to say exactly that. By this point, everyone fell silent as the conversation was heading to an interesting direction. He was growing flustered while your mom maintained her composure, waiting for him to counter her.

“Th-The homeless--”

“There are homeless communities everywhere! But does the government care to do anything about it? No. If Rupert actually does something about this, he can have my two cents but for now, I’m sure his bald comb-over would appreciate your argument.”

This was when Aiden did a spit take, water spilling over their table. He turned away, holding back laughter that evolved into loud snickers. You couldn’t help but join in, seeing your mother handle herself well. “Jesus Christ, Aiden.” You giggled, wiping away the spill with your clothed napkin.

 

Once the three of you finished your meal, Aiden insisted on paying the bill for your mom’s sake. You were pretty sure he was only sucking up to her to impress you which, admittedly, was a good move. He had excused himself to the restroom while you and your mother had time to talk alone. She looked at you and took your hand. “[Name], I wanted to talk to you about Aiden.” she began. “I think I know what’s going on here.”

All at once, your mind raced to all these ideals she may have or perhaps she saw through the fake relationship you had with Aiden. But his acting was quite convincing even you believed it for a moment. How could she have seen through it? Panicked, you told her the truth. “Look, it’s not what you think, we were only--”

“[Name], I know you’re dating the vigilante.” Your mom confessed as you took on a look of surprise. She bought the lie, after all. “Aiden’s face is all over the news, he might be one of the most wanted men out there but if being with him makes you happy, I can’t stop you.”

You gaped, speechless. The two of you sat staring at each other for a moment until you finally came up with a response. Instead of admitting the biggest lie you made to her, you decided to go along with her and continued the conversation. “Y-You’re not mad?”

“Why should I be?” Your mom scoffed. “You’re old enough to understand these things. Aiden is a great guy. There’s no way I could ruin your happiness because he’s got a criminal record. Yeah, it sounds crazy saying it like that but he’s not the enemy here. I would know because he saved my life, I won’t forget that.” She reached over to gently brush your hair behind your ear then gently caresses your cheek. “I’m sure he’ll keep you safe.”

You felt your eyes start to water at your mother’s words. The kind of understanding you were hoping from her. You felt bad about lying but what she was saying made you thankful you met Aiden. Tears were trailing down your cheeks and you wiped them away, trying not to cry. “Th-Thanks, mom.”

She looked behind you, smiling and whispered softly. “Aiden’s coming back. You should hide those tears now before he asks about it.”

“Right.” You feigned a laugh, gently wiping your eyes. The eyeliner you wore had stained the restaurant napkin and you had decided to take it off anyway.

“Hey, did I miss anything?” Aiden asked as he approached the table, standing over your chair before looking over to you. “You alright?”

“Yeah.” You nodded, smiling up at him.

“We’re just having a little girl talk, that’s all.” Your mother replied with a smile.

“That reminds me, I need to call my sister later.” He noted. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah, sure.” Both you and your mother agreed, standing up to leave the restaurant as Aiden escorted the both of you to the car, allowing your mother to get in first.

“Your sister, huh?” You questioned, raising a brow his direction as he opened the passenger side door for you.

“I had no idea you had a sister, Aiden,” Your mother added as he went behind the wheel. “Why didn’t you invite her along?”

“She’s really busy with work and taking care of my nephew,” Aiden explained. “I’ll try to get her to join us one of these days.”

“You should do that!” Your mom agreed. “We can get to know your family a lot better. Does she know about you and [Name]?”

“I’m… working on that.”

“Now why are you hiding things from your sister?” Your mom scolded him. “She has a right to know these things. Don’t be shy!”

“I-I’m not being shy, I was waiting for the right time.” Aiden stuttered. It seems your mom knew how to make the vigilante crack, she could almost land a job as a detective more than a homemaker.

“Well, if you get the chance to call your sister, let her know.”

“Alright, [M/N].”

It had only been a day but hearing Aiden say your mom’s name sounded weird. They seem to have clicked a lot faster than your mom did with anyone else. She must really like Aiden for him to say her first name so casually. You took it as a good thing since your past relationships were only allowed to call her by “Mrs.” and nothing else.

“You two seem pretty close.” You pointed out. “I wonder why that is.”

“He’s quite the charmer,” Your mother chuckled. “I can see why you like him so much.” She peers up at the road to see a car trying to merge into the lane. “Slow down, Aiden.”

“Mom, he’s driving the speed limit,” You argued. “How slow do you want him to go?”

“The car in the other lane wanted to switch, I was only reminding him to slow down.”

“I don’t think he needs a backseat driver.”

“Ladies, it’s alright.” Aiden assured you both. “I’ll slow down so we can get you both home safely.”

 

After dropping your mother off and saying your goodbyes, it was now you and Aiden in the car alone driving to your place in comfortable silence. You thought of what your mom said about Aiden and looked over at him. He, of course, returned to his usual attire after your mother had left. You didn’t tell him your mom knew he was the vigilante yet. He must have known that by now but hadn’t brought it up to her. Maybe he didn’t want to shock her since he did maim her car earlier. You started to wonder what it was like to actually date Aiden. The thought made you a bit shy but thinking of the way he touched your hair and kissed your forehead gave you a warm feeling in your chest.

Aiden would occasionally look off to the side, minding the road until he felt you staring at him. He ignored it at first thinking you may have only been glancing but your eyes remained glued to him as you were lost in thought. It was starting to feel awkward but he assumed you had something to say. “Something on your mind?” He spoke.

You lost your train of thought when you heard his voice in question. “No, not really,” you replied. “I was just thinking.”

“Well, it’s just us in here.” He mentioned. “Feel free to share your thoughts?”

You suddenly felt embarrassed to tell him you were thinking about what it would be like to date him. You knew the consequences but surely enough, weighing the pros and cons won’t change how you feel about him. A crush on Aiden Pearce. It was cute putting it that way, a smile forming on your face.

“Your… smiling.” He noted, turning his gaze to you as he reached a stop at the intersection. “What is it?”

He seemed pretty insistent and realizing that your smiling got you pretty flustered with Aiden’s eyes on you now. You tried to sound as calm as you could without meaning to sound so shy. “I was just thinking about how nice it was talking with my mom and you meeting her.” You explained, gazing out the window. “I haven’t seen her that happy since I graduated uni. It’s nice to see that look on her face. I-I mean, not that what happened between us was real or anything which it wasn’t. It was nice to see her happy.”

“I understand,” said Aiden. “Don’t think I’ll be telling my sister about this any time soon.”

“And why not?” you wondered. “I’d like to meet her.”

He chuckled. “Don’t try to side with your mom on this; It’s complicated.”

“What’s so complicated about that?” you asked. “We could just do the same thing we did with my mom and hopes she buys it.”

“I doubt she’ll believe that I found someone,” he answered. “With my line of work, it only sounds so far-fetched.”

“Don’t say that!” You scolded him. There was no way he could persuade you into thinking someone wasn’t into him in some way. It stung your heart a little to think that someone else likes him. For some reason, you were more comfortable of the idea of him around you rather than see him with someone else. “I think you’re a great guy, Aiden Pearce.”

At the mention of his name, he couldn’t help but chuckle as he smiled your way. Seeing him in such a way made your heart leap out of your chest you swore you were floating as if you had taken a heavy dosage of a good audio trip but you were standing in real time.

“And you are one interesting girl, [First, Last].” You can sense the sincerity in his voice that made your heart sing into the heavens in hope that your feelings are heard.

Before you knew it, he had already parked at the curb in front of your apartment building with the engine off. Time must have passed as you didn’t notice him stop. It was one of those moments that reminded you of your conversations with Cat and the late night drives where you two would talk for hours about work and everything in between. Although, maybe the time for that to happen with you and Aiden was a milestone away. He did seem the type to wear his heart on his sleeve so maybe having those days would be just the same.

The two of you sat in comfortable silence until you glanced up at the apartment through your window. You hesitated to leave as you didn’t want the night to end but the two of you lived in completely different worlds and tomorrow would be as if it never happened.

“I better get going,” You said. “I’ll see you… whenever?”

“I’ll look you up if I wanna go on another date.” Aiden teased.

“You know where to find me.” You mused, stepping out into the sidewalk, closing the door behind you. You were about to leave then turned around to knock on the car window.

The passenger side window opened halfway before you peered inside. “By the way, my mom figured out you were the vigilante.”

A half-smile appeared on his face and he shrugged in reply. “I tried my hardest to conceal my identity, too.”

“Sweetie, your face is all over the news.” You smirked. “You’ll have to try harder.”

“Thanks.” he obliged, then added. “‘Night.”

“Good night, Aiden.” You replied, stepping away from the vehicle and moving towards the building. As soon as you reach the door, he calls out to you.

“[Name]?”

You turned in response. “Yes?”

He opened his mouth to speak but he stopped himself, obviously changing his mind. “Nevermind.” he shook his head. “It’s not important.”

“Okay. I’ll see you around then.” You disclosed before walking inside.

Aiden watched as you disappeared behind the glass walls and sighed, leaning back against his seat. “Goddammit, Pearce. What’s the matter with you?” He asked himself. “This isn’t like you to get flustered like that. What will you gain from putting her in danger? Why me?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was trying to make this one funny but it was slightly on a more sentimental note. I tried but I hope you enjoyed it.


	3. I Trust You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what to make of this one. Enjoy?

 

_I see you got your phone back_

A message from Cat read after you sent her a text first thing in the morning, having forgotten to have done so prior to Aiden returning your phone. Due to her busy schedule and your constant job hunting, neither of you had time to communicate much less meetup once in awhile. You looked at the message before taking a moment to reply back.

_yeah it took a while but he finally came around. I had no idea he does so many things with only his phone. can you believe it??_

_so thaat’s how he gets around. Os he related to those fuck ups like the streetlights and whatnot?_

_Is**_

_This all happened when he showed up. I would think he has something to do with them._

_I think so._ You replied. _Everything flipped out at the tap of the screen. It was insane._

_I believe you._ Cat agreed. _It must be easy for him to get around._

_yeah_

_btw are you busy tonight?_

_if you are wanna hang? some friends from work are going for a drink._

You happened to be free the entire day so there wasn’t much to worry about. Aiden was obviously busy with vigilante things, you didn’t want to bother him by calling or even leaving a text. This must have meant you needed a break for a change. The thought of Aiden made your heart skip a beat especially after what happened the other day, he was all you can think about. Surely, you ached to see him again even if only for a moment.

You glanced back down at your phone and sent a reply.

_I’m free. what time you leaving?_

_After work_ , she said. _I’ll call you when im on my way_

_gtg my break is ending_

_cool. see ya later!_

You closed the messaging app and decided to look through some online news articles since there was nothing else to do. A particular headline caught your eye when you saw an image that involved Aiden and felt you had to see for yourself why it was titled this: “‘ _Vigilante Aiden Pearce, Strikes Again! This Time It’s Personal._ ’”

“What the fuck?” You blurted out. Unbelievable! They made it seem like he was some kind of hitman of sorts. You continued reading further into the article, trying to comprehend why he was practically on the front of the web page. It was commonplace that Aiden would be on the “trending” section of the news bulletin as of late but was the exaggerated title really necessary?

The article basically described an ordinary Chicago evening when an explosion from a steam pipe in the street erupted, killing two men in a vehicle who turned out to be gunmen while the others were shot and killed on the spot while one lived to see another day, suffering from a gunshot wound and a few bruises. Luckily, no one else was hurt as it occurred in the dead of night. Somehow, you felt like asking Aiden what this story was all about. He wouldn’t just kill people on a whim or for the fun of it like some sick madman.

You rolled your eyes as you read through all the nonsense and mindless propaganda that was being said. It was upsetting to see such biased information based on a simple convoy turned bad all because the vigilante was doing what the authorities couldn’t: his job. Speaking of jobs, you wonder if Aiden had a real job or if “vigilante” was part of his resumé. You closed the tab, having felt you read enough. You stared at the screen, debating whether or not to call Aiden today. It was then your phone received a call from you-know-who to which you answered in a split second.

“Hi, Aiden,” you purred, hoping to catch him off-guard by teasing him with an alluring tone. “I was just thinking about you.”

There was silence on the other line followed by a soft chuckle. It seems you impressed him with your charm in a single attempt proved to be successful. “ _I’m flattered_ ,” his low, gravelly voice said against your ear. “ _It’s a good thing I called; you were dying to hear from me again._ ”

You were trying to keep your composure but were reduced to a giggling mess at the sound of his voice. Hearing him turned you into putty the instant he said something. “Don’t give yourself too much credit.” You teased. “By the way, you’re on the front page again.”

“ _Isn’t that a surprise?_ ” Aiden said, slightly impressed. “ _What did it say this time, that I shot a human being who committed a real crime?_ ”

“That sounds about right.” You agreed. “What happened with that?”

“ _It’s, uh, complicated._ ” He replied. “ _Let’s just say he was making a deal with the wrong kind of people._ ”

“O-Oh,” You stammered. People like that are ones you steered clear from for the sake of everyone you knew and loved, mostly for your own sake. “That’s crazy.”

“ _This world is full of crazies._ ” Aiden pointed out. “ _But, that’s what I’m here for. Anyway, how’ve you been?_ ”

“A lot better now that you’ve called.” You giggled. “You?”

From the sound of people getting excited in the other line, Aiden was obviously out and about. People seemed to get pretty hyped with him simply being there. “ _The same as always._ ”

“You’ve got quite the fanbase,” You mused. “Why don’t you take pictures and give autographs? I’m sure someone would want you to sign their phone.”

He laughed. “ _Very funny, [Name]._ ” The way he said your name left tingles throughout your body. You sighed, it was nice to feel this way. “ _I’m not in it for the glory._ ”

“Then, what is it?” You asked him.

He fell quiet for a moment, almost too quiet that you thought he had hung up. “Aiden, you still there?”

“ _Yeah, I’m here._ ” he answered. “ _Listen, I gotta take this. I’ll see you later._ ” Without waiting for a response, he hung up.

“Wait--Aiden!” You groaned. “Was it something I said?”

 

There was laughter at the other end of the line as Aiden answered the phone. Clara was laughing uncontrollably and Aiden had no idea how to calm her down. He wasn’t even sure why she was laughing to begin with. He turned to stare at his phone before placing it back on his ear. “Clara?” He said slowly. “You alright?”

“ _I’m--,_ ” she chuckled. “ _I’m here! Aiden, have you seen--_ ” She couldn’t finish her sentence as she was too busy laughing. He gave her a moment to let her continue laughing until she calmed down. It took her about five minutes before the laughter was reduced to giggle fits.

“Clara.” Aiden called out to her again.

“ _Oh, wow._ ” Clara sighed, laughing slightly. “ _I can’t believe this._ ”

“Clara, what happened?” asked Aiden. “Why are you laughing?”

“ _Aiden, are you aware that there is a porno of you going around?_ ”

“A what?” Aiden was taken aback. “What are you talking about?”

“ _You know what I’m talking about._ ” She replied. “ _A porn video of you with some blond girl. It’s so bad._ ”

“Why would anyone make something like that?”

“ _I don’t know but you need to listen, it’s terrible._ ” She sends him an audio sample through the phone.

_You’re not pizza man._

_I can be whatever you want me to be._

_Care to play with me for a bit? The pizza can wait._

_Mmm. I would rather have you than the pizza._

“Clara, delete this!” Aiden demanded. He didn’t seem too happy about someone posing as him to be some random girl’s plaything.

Clara burst out laughing. “ _I can’t, it’s viral!_ ” She exclaimed. Aiden imagined her wiping tears from her eyes. “ _I can’t do anything about it._ ”

“Is there some way I can get rid of it?” Aiden scowled.

“ _It’s on an official porn site, even if you manage to remove it someone most likely has it downloaded onto their hard drive by now._ ” Clara explained. “ _And that is a lot of people._ ”

“Goddammit.”

“ _Just let people have their fun, Aiden._ ” Clara voiced. “ _In about a month or so, it will blow over. When something new comes along, everyone will forget all about it._ ”

“Not sure if I want to walk around in public being mistaken for the pizza man.” Aiden grumbled.

“ _Aiden, it’s alright._ ” 

He sighed, not liking the idea that he was the laughingstock of everyone who watched the video. It was bad on his end, how would anyone take him seriously now? “Alright.” Aiden murmured. “I’ll get past it eventually.”

There was a beep in the call and Aiden took this as a cue to end their conversation. “I need to go, I’m getting a call.” He hung up and answered the incoming call.

“ _Hey, is this the pizza man?_ ”

“Fuck you!” cursed Aiden. “This better not be the reason to call me.”

“ _So you’ve seen it too, huh?_ ” Jordi commented. “ _I mean I dunno, the outfit could use some work. Is this guy not aware that Chicago is called the ‘Windy City’ for a reason?_ ”

“If you keep droning on about the video, I’m hanging up.” Aiden snapped.

“ _Just wanted to hear your reaction._ ” Jordi admitted. “ _I take it you don’t like porn--_ ”

Aiden hung up almost immediately, shaking his head. He noticed a text that came in ten minutes ago and took a peek.

_was it something I said???_

With a thumb hovered over the keypad, Aiden was thinking of how to respond but he couldn’t find the words. If only you knew how hard it was for him to answer your question, you two wouldn’t have this conversation. He was afraid of how you would feel. The reason he became the vigilante was all because of Lena. He didn’t have the heart to tell you over the phone. He withdrew his thumb away from the screen before Jordi called again and he answered. “What now?”

“ _Why’d you hang up on me?_ ” Jordi asked, innocently.

“You know exactly why I did that!” snapped Aiden.

“ _Yeah, I know._ ” He chuckled. “ _Anyway, the real reason why I called was because I got a tip from an unknown source that a number of girls have gone missing lately. I don’t know why I’m getting this but I thought maybe you would be interested in something like this, Mr. Vigilante._ ”

“I’m listening.”

“ _Let’s say, there’s a pretty, little lady who decided to step out one evening for a drink or perhaps she went to Dot Connexion._ ” Jordi explained. “ _Suddenly, she disappears. Work hasn’t heard from her and her family has no idea where she’s gone. Where would she have wound up?_ ”

“An auction.” Aiden guessed.

“ _Bingo!_ ” Jordi applauded. “ _But, I figured this case needed a vigilante intervention. You interested?_ ”

“If it involves innocent women being taken against their own will, of course I’d do it.”

“ _That’s the spirit_ ,” said Jordi. “ _Guess you get all the fun._ ”

“Wanna come with?”

“ _You want me to come? A front row seat of how the vigilante goes on his nightly patrol?_ ” The fixer was surprised. “ _How could I say no to that? You never invite me anywhere. Does this mean we’re friends now?_ ”

“Don’t push it.” the vigilante warned. “I might need your help.”

“ _Aww, that’s sweet._ ” Jordi cooed. “ _I’m here as long as you pay me, Pearce._ ”

“Sure thing, Jordi.”

 

===

 

Cat called to let you know she had arrived. She sat waiting in her car for a few moments until she saw you in clear view before starting up the engine. You sat in the front seat right beside her and clipped on your seat belt as she drove away into the busy streets.

“How’ve you been?” You asked her. “How’s work?”

She made the look of exasperation and sighed. “Please just kill me! End me!” she cried. “My boss is such a bitch! This is the third time this week she made someone cry!”

“Oh my gosh!” You exclaimed. “What happened?”

“She is so petty. So apparently my team hasn’t been picking up any slack since one guy quit.” Cat explained. “And by quit, I mean he wrote ‘Going on vacation; not coming back’.”

“Is it that bad now?”

“It’s that bad.” she replied. “We had fourteen people and it nailed down to three.”

“That’s brutal.” You sympathized. “Is she even human?”

“I am still trying to figure out how she goes around if she has such a bad leg.” She wondered. “But it’s whatever, I don’t care. I’m the only one standing up to her because everyone in my department are all introverts and they’re afraid of her. Whatever she says, goes. Fucking tyrant.”

She went on a tangent for another minute or so, which you didn’t mind considering how long it’s been since you two last spoke. It was better than being alone with your own thoughts and your frequent fantasies of being around Aiden. You hope the drink won’t force you to confess those embarrassing thoughts tonight.

“So, anyway, any luck finding another job yet?” Cat finally asked as she finished ranting. 

“It’s an ongoing process,” You replied. “I did call some of them back but I guess I’m going to need to wait a bit longer.”

“Good luck.” Cat encouraged you. “These days a lot of jobs are turning to ctOS for background information to make sure you didn’t commit a crime or are a criminal.”

“I rarely ever go out, how can they think _I’m_ a criminal?”

“Who knows, but I think hanging around the vigilante might make them think otherwise.” Cat hinted.

“He’s not a disease that will rub off on me. Also, it’s not like I’ll turn into a vigilante, too.”

“I know but I’m just worried about you, okay?” Cat chided. “He’s a different kind of person and I don’t want you getting caught up in that.”

“Cat, I’ll be alright.” You assured her. “Really.”

“Well, if you say so then I trust you.”

“You and my mom have two different opinions about the vigilante.” You noted.

“Your mom met the vigilante?!” Cat shouted. “When? How did that happen?”

“It’s a long story,” you said. “Let’s just say she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“I think there was something in the news about that.” Cat remembered. “And it looked a lot like her car.”

“That’s what she got caught up in.” You tell her. “She wasn’t hurt thankfully but now she has to find a new car, luckily her insurance has her covered.”

“Luckily indeed.” Cat echoed. “What’s he like, anyway?”

“Hm?”

“The vigilante.” She repeated. “What’s he like?”

At the mention of Aiden, your mind went to every possible moment that you can recall after all those times you had encountered him and all you could do was get lost thinking about his voice saying your name, the unshaven stubbles that aged his face quite well making him look a lot more attractive than he already was. His gentle hands that caressed your face followed by his eyes that gleamed like emeralds. He was a dangerous man out to steal your heart and you eagerly await him to do so. “Oh, where do I begin?” You wondered. “He’s so… gentle,” You said. “He’s really sweet and dignified. Aiden isn’t how the news describes him to be. It’s the complete opposite, really. He gives off that feeling of security and it just makes you feel comfortable around him like you could tell him anything. And when he smiles, it’s just so-” You turned to face Cat only for her to smile at you. “W-Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You like him, don’t you?” Cat smirked, raising a brow. “I’ve seen that look before.”

“What do you mean?”

“You can’t fool me, [Nickname],” Cat chuckled. “The way you talked about him like he was the greatest thing to ever happen to you, I’d say you have a thing for him. And it seems like this isn’t the first time you’ve seen him, I bet.”

“Well, after I returned his phone we exchanged numbers,” You recalled. “And when I say ‘exchange’, I mean he forcibly added himself to my contacts and somehow convinced my mom we were dating.”

“Wow,” Cat was in awe. “I can’t believe I’m saying this but he is one smooth criminal.”

You stared at her for a long moment and spoke. “If you make another bad joke like that, I am getting out of this car.”

“It had to be done!” She laughed. “He did a better job at picking up a woman than any of these other guys.”

“You’re right, huh?” You agreed. You weren’t expecting the vigilante to have his eyes on you nor did you think you two would talk as if you were good friends or to have him meet your mom for the first time. But it just so happened, that was exactly how it went down.

 

===

 

Cat introduced you to her coworkers. The one with long, blonde hair was Candy, the short, Asian girl was Ashley and the last girl to arrive was named Emily. She was a tall, black woman sporting space buns. 

Emily looked rather upset as soon as she had arrived, abruptly pulling up a chair and slumped in her seat between you and Ashley, drink in hand. “Gosh, my bank is slacking on their security.”

“What happened?” asked Ashley, who looked slightly worried.

“Well, I went to withdraw some money today when I noticed a huge chunk was taken out of my account.” Emily explained. “I told them about it and they said they would look into it.” she huffed, taking a huge gulp of her drink. “So much for being FDIC insured. Can’t believe some Houdini siphoned six-hundred dollars out of thin air.”

“That’s a lot of money.” You commented.

“Yeah, _and_ I have to pay rent tomorrow!” Emily cried. “Talk about good timing. Has that ever happened to anyone?”

“No, but I’ve had my car stolen before,” said Candy. “It somehow found its way into Pawnee.”

“Pawnee!?” You all exclaimed in unison.

“Don’t ask me how but when the police returned it to me, it was in good condition save for the little dent in my bumper,” Candy added. “And, uh, whoever took my car also stole my Apple Watch.”

“How could you leave something that valuable in your car!?” Cat scolded.

“I was busy at work that week, I must’ve taken it off and forgot about it.” the blonde argued. “What I’m trying to figure out is how they managed to open my car and not trigger the alarm and just go for a joyride and abandon it all the way out in the wilderness in one night.”

You were listening to the girls’ stories and it sounded like a stunt Aiden would pull off. After your encounter with the vigilante’s smartphone, you understood how he went around so flawlessly without anyone noticing. Whatever program he had, it gave him access to a number of things. The stolen vehicle, the money, what next?

“Ugh, I’m so pissed,” grumbled Emily. “I need a drink and maybe something to makeup for what happened to me.”

“Hey, did you guys hear?” Candy hinted. “There’s this porn of the vigilante going around. My roommate sent me a video.”

“Oh gosh, _don’t_ show us!” pleaded Emily.

“I have never seen it,” Ashley claimed.

“You want to?” Candy insisted.

Cat rolled her eyes. “I have a feeling this is an all-out cringefest.”

“Aren’t they all like that?” You noted.

“Yes, and I want no part of this.” Emily turned away, not wanting to watch while you and the others scooted chairs close to see.

Few minutes in, the girls were already commenting on the video before the juicy parts even started. It featured a blonde sitting in her living room wearing a tanktop and spandex shorts. Ashley took one good look at the female and spoke. “Candy, is that you?”

“Kinda looks like her, doesn’t it?” Cat teased.

“Oh, god no!” Candy disagreed. “It’s not me. I have no idea who she is.”

Curiously, Emily decided to take a little peek. It was on the part where the “vigilante” made his appearance, she lost it. 

“ _Pffft!_ ” she nearly laughed off of her chair. “ _Oh my god, that’s so bad!_ ”

_You’re not the pizza man._

“Well, no shit,” said Ashley. “He jumped in through your window empty-handed. I wonder what gave that away?”

“He’s fucking shirtless under that coat, are you fucking kidding me?” Cat complained. “He was ready to bone her from the start.”

“You guys don’t know how much I am loving our commentary right now.” mused Candy.

“The vigilante looks way better than this guy.” You pointed out, feigning a laugh. “I feel very uncomfortable.”

“Me, too,” agreed Emily. “Why am I even watching this?”

“Oh, god, they’re about to fuck.” Ashley panicked. “Candy, turn it off.”

“Please, I think people are staring at us.” Emily begged.

Candy began fiddling with the screen of her phone, pausing the video and proceeded to close it. One mis-tap and she accidently pushed play, a moan made itself known after Candy closed out the video. Silence filled your table as you all sat around each other, thinking of how deep the graves you dug were. The look on Emily’s face meant she was definitely going to church this Sunday.

A male voice broke the silence among your group. The tone was rather playful and a bit on the husky side. However, it was oddly familiar and you couldn’t put your finger on it. Strangely enough, it sounded closer than you expected like he was practically behind you.

“You know when you get to the part when they start getting into it, her tits start to look surreal when they’re gyrating out of control as he’s pounding her.” He mentions. “I was expecting the pizza guy, but this is pretty damn hilarious.”

You quickly turn to see a Chinese man who looked to be in his late-thirties to mid-forties with mid-length hair and wearing a grey suit. Although, he was talking to the others, he happened to keep his eyes glued to you. Somehow, you feel like he knew you but you couldn’t put your finger on it. You noted the phone he was holding was set aside since he noticed what you and the girls were looking at. Hopefully, he wasn’t trying to drop hints your way.

“You girls should try finishing that video. It, uh, gets worse from there.” The man suggested, gesturing his fingers to urge you all to continue. “The things this man says makes you wonder who was in charge of writing the script. I’m pretty sure the vigilante himself would satisfy you with better options. Anyway, you lovely ladies have a good night.” He looked to each of them with a smile and a nod. “‘Kay? Okay.” He pats your chair before heading out the door, placing the phone onto his ear as he continued with his conversation. 

“What? Oh, no.” The man continued. “I was just making conversation with some ladies in the bar. Don’t even worry about it, you won’t even get laid…” His muffled voice could still be heard from outside.

“Hey, was that guy just looking you over?” Ashley asked you. “[Name], do you know him?”

“Actually, I’ve never seen him before.” You admitted. “For some reason, I don’t think he was looking at me because he was into me.”

“That reminds me, we should go man-hunting tonight.” Candy suggested. “He totally looked like daddy-material.”

Emily made the sign of the cross as she gave Candy a disapproving look. “The Lord is judging you, Candice.”

“But, Emily.” whispered the blond. “Potential sugar daddies.”

“Why are you like this?” Emily pinched at her nose, annoyed.

 

===

 

After a bothersome amount of pestering from Candy, all of you headed down to Dot Connexion for a girls’ night out, much to Emily’s dismay. Ashley wasn’t much of a drinker, so she was the one responsible for being the designated driver for the evening. On the car ride there, you were all absorbed in a conversation about the recent news stories you’ve all seen and heard. The main topic of discussion transitioned from politics, crime and the occasional talk of the upcoming weather predictions.

“What do you guys think of the vigilante guy?” Ashley suddenly asked. “What was his name, Aiden?” The moment of truth. It made you a bit anxious to hear what they have to say.

From personal experience, all he did was try to protect people but with you, it felt different. He saw you for who you were, not just some person he came across on a day-to-day basis. Aiden called you by name, he takes the time to call you even if it was only for a moment. He laughs, smiles and looks only at you. The way he took care of you after the date with your mom, waiting in the car before making sure you got home safely. It seems you were more important to him than the crime-ridden city you both resided in.

“I’m leaning towards indifference.” Emily answered. “He does a better job at detecting a crime way before the authorities can but I doubt he can stop every crime. He’s just one person.”

“I’m for him and all over him!” Candy announced. “And I mean, all over him.”

“Okay, _Candice_.” Ashley rolled her eyes. “We get it.”

“Do you think he’s single?” Candy wondered, making you perk up and look to her direction. It was the first you have heard someone else ask that question. You always wondered how Aiden hadn’t found anyone yet but you remembered he was the vigilante and if there was a way for him to see someone, it was risky. “I might just put myself in trouble to see if he’ll show up,” She continued. “Just how bad does it have to be for him to intervene?”

There was a twinge of anger rising up to your shoulders, you tensed at the feeling. You were quite peeved that Candy would go to such lengths to have her way with Aiden. It sounded careless, what if he didn’t show? A part of you hoped he wouldn’t and she’d get what she asked for. It was wrong for you to think that way even if you were angry but Aiden wouldn’t fall for something that stupid, would he?

“That’s suicide! You can’t do that!” Cat fumed. “What if he isn’t there when that happens to you? What are you going to do, cry for help?”

“You really should think this through first.” Emily warned. “You can’t just pay someone to fake a crime for you. You don’t know what he’s capable of if he knows you aren’t in real trouble.”

“He’d probably let you off with a warning but I’m sure he won’t be nice about it next time.” Ashley claimed. “If he knows where the crime’s gonna happen, I think he’d already know what you were planning. Don’t be a dumb blond, we’re begging you.”

“Oh my god, leave my hair out of this!” Candy whined. “Why is everyone against blondes?”

“It’s just you, Candy.” You teased, almost tempted to have been curt about your response but left it at that. You just met her, after all. Best not to get off on the wrong foot.

 

You and the girls arrive at Dot Connexion only to be met with a long line of clubgoers, eager to get inside. You felt rather insecure about the female clubgoers seeing as how slim and curvy some of them looked wearing such skimpy and revealing clothes. It left an impression of how Aiden walked in on you wearing nothing but your underwear.

The five of you stood at the back of the line, waiting to get inside. It would take a while until everyone else could simply walk in and out at any time while the bouncer did occasional ID checks and kicked out wild drunks or anyone who caused trouble.

“Once we get in there, I am not engaging with anyone,” Emily declared. “I am getting a drink and that’s that.”

“You’re no fun!” Ashley teased. “There’s lots of potential here.”

“I’ll pass.” Emily declined. “Why don’t you guys do some searching while I enjoy my life as an asexual, yeah?”

“That sounds like a pretty sad life.” Candy droned. “Doesn’t that bother you at least a little bit?”

“Nope.” Emily shook her head. “Not at all.”

“What about you, [Name]?” urged Candy. “You with us?”

“Actually…” You trailed off, not sure how to finish that sentence without it saying, ‘I have a crush on the vigilante’. “I’m interested in someone else.”

“Oohh.” The girls had their eyes on you, intrigued by this new information. Questions were bombarded your way as they asked, “What’s he like?” “Where did you guys meet?” or “What’s his name?” and even “What nationality is he?” You could only answer at least one of those questions honestly, the rest you chose to keep secret.

“Well, he’s really sweet,” You continued, describing all the features of Aiden that made you fond of him without actually giving away his name. “He has this deep, sexy voice and these annoying stubbles that he doesn’t bother shaving. And he has these piercing green eyes that you could just get lost in.”

“Have you guys done it yet?” Ashley asked discreetly, her voice soft enough only for you and the others to hear.

“We haven’t even gone there yet.” You admitted. “I-I don’t think he even feels the same way.” The more you talked about Aiden, the more you yearned for him, to see his face and hear his voice again. Thinking about him in such a way made it hard for you to imagine being with anyone else.

“Why don’t we spice things up a bit between you and him?” Candy proposed. “If he sees you with someone else, it might prove if he’s a jealous type and he’d try to get to you to see if he really feels the same.”

“No, I’d rather not do that.” You declined. “I don’t think that would work. He might think differently and I don’t want to do that to him.” You would never do that to Aiden, you couldn’t do that to him. _What if that could potentially hurt him?_ you thought. 

He was just perfect in every way, he fit the expectation of what you could want in a relationship. You haven’t even confessed yet, there was no way something like this would hurt him. It’s not that you wanted to attempt it but doing so was going to hurt you more than it was going to hurt him.

After the call this morning, Aiden hadn’t called since and he was all you could think about. It was best not to bother him at this hour. You were tempted to check your phone for any calls but decided it made you seem desperate and waited until you were inside to check. Thinking about it only made you feel anxious.

“From the look of things, [Name] really seems to like this guy,” Emily observed. “I think you girls should lay off and let her be.”

You gave Emily a grateful look and placed your hands onto your chest in relief. Finally someone who understands! “Thank you!”

“You can’t mess with true love.” Ashley shrugged, having surrendered instead of trying to force you.

“I--W-Well, it’s not like that!” You sputtered. “At least, not yet.”

“Come on, children, we can talk about that later.” Cat advised as the line was beginning to move. “Right now, we should worry about getting inside first.”

The bouncer was doing a body check to make sure the guests didn’t carry anything that could potentially be a threat. The only threat here was the intimidating gatekeeper from hell patting down the male standing in front of Ashley. He was twice the size of the other man and could snap him in half if he ever crossed him. The thought was absolutely horrifying. It made you wonder if Aiden had ever come across anyone like him and walked away in one piece.

Once the others had gone through, coming up clean, it was finally your turn. You gulped, hoping the bouncer didn’t notice your distress. You had nothing but your wallet and your phone so there wasn’t anything to worry about but he just looked so… mean, if that was the word to use. The man gave a nod as he finished checking, allowing you access inside to join your friends.

“You okay?” Cat chuckled as she walked next to you. “You looked really freaked out. I think he felt sorry for you so he didn’t do much.”

“Oh my god, I was hoping he wouldn’t notice,” you said. “He just looked so… scary.”

“Appearances aren’t everything, sweetie,” Candy contended, patting your shoulder. “I’m pretty sure he likes gardening.”

“You say that as if you know,” You countered. “I mean he probably does but who am I to judge?”

 

“Pearce!” exclaimed Jordi from the driver’s seat. 

Aiden jumped slightly from Jordi’s startling shout. He hadn’t done that before, he knew that. Aiden never once flinched when Jordi was this rambunctious. He had spaced out this time, wondering how you were doing. Normally, when he was lost in thought it was never like this. He was watching as you and your friends stepped behind the club doors. This was the second time he had seen you all dressed up. Although, he still felt bad about walking in on you trying to change. He felt he was overstepping his bounds since it was your place, after all. It was rude of him to invade your privacy like that.

Jordi laughed. “Jesus, did I startle you?” The fixer playfully nudged him to which Aiden scowled. “Come on, you never leave me hanging like this. What’s the matter, Pearce?”

“Nothing that concerns you.” Aiden replied curtly.

“You sound like your girlfriend just dumped you.” Jordi joked. “Unless she did and it’s too early be joking about it. Come on, Pearce. Tell Uncle Jordi what’s on your mind.”

“Since when do you care about anything I do?” asked Aiden, turning to the fixer in question.

“Eh,” Jordi shrugged, disinterested. “I mean since we’re sitting here and not out there, might as well… talk. I guess.”

“I’d rather not.” the vigilante objected. “We’re working, Jordi.”

“Doesn’t mean we can’t have a little chat.” Jordi insisted. “What’s she like anyway?”

“That’s a little too personal.” Aiden contested.

“So says the guy who mentions his family a lot.” Jordi argued. “I’m not asking for her address, I was only asking what you think. What, you think I called you to ask if you wanted to have a sleepover? Let’s paint each other’s nails, braid each other’s hair and talk about our hopes and dreams.”

Aiden rolled his eyes. “Jordi.”

“I noticed you were looking at those girls outside earlier.” Jordi observed. “So tell me, which one’s your type?”

Aiden sighed. He really didn’t want to have this conversation right now.

“No wait, don’t tell me,” said Jordi. “I’m gonna go on a hunch and say it’s the blonde one.”

“No.” Aiden chortled.

“Is it the Asian girl?” He guessed. 

“Nope.”

“Can’t really tell what kind of woman you’re into.” Jordi remarked. “Keeping up the mysterious act, I see. Lucky for you, girls are really into that these days. It’s gotta be the black woman. She’s pretty hot, too. So which is it?”

Aiden gave a smirk and chuckled. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“Hey, you know since you’re just going to wait in the car, I’m gonna do some digging of my own.” Jordi says, opening the car door.

“Jordi, don’t you dare go near those girls!” Aiden warned him.

“Relax, I’ll keep a reasonable distance but if one of them comes onto me I can’t turn that offer down.” Jordi informed him. “You gotta get off the dry spell, Pearce and get yourself laid.” He closed the door before crossing the street and into the club. The music could be heard even through closed doors, the vibrations shook the ground in its wake.

Knowing Jordi, the man had a way with persuasion before going in for the kill or in this case, bribery. He slipped the bouncer some cash before slipping his way inside without having to get checked. He must obviously have a wide range of weaponry on his person. Aiden had bigger things to worry about when he saw a suspicious black van roll up into the alleyway while remaining hidden in the dark. It had only two doors and tinted windows, front and back. It seems they didn’t plan on being subtle in their means of transportation or “packaging”. The vigilante sat watching, waiting. 

After a moment, two shady characters stepped out from the van as they drove in through the alleyway and exchanged a few words. Aiden noticed a camera from above them, pulling out his phone to hack the device. He zoomed in and their conversation was clear as day. 

“ _It’s pretty packed tonight._ ” One of them said. “ _Think we’ll get lucky again?_ ”

“ _After that last one, I doubt it._ ” the other replied. “ _Demarco’s aesthetics tend to attract all the hot ones. If it all goes well, we’ll be lucky enough to get a pay raise for the trouble. We got a few guys already in there looking for potential girls._ ”

“ _Hot, drunk girls are always easy to nab._ ”

The conversation had ended short once Aiden had heard all he needed to know, he called Jordi to report what he had discovered. Perhaps the fixer could clean up the mess inside since he was already in position while Aiden waited for them to make their move, trying to hold back the impulse of wanting to shoot them.

“Jordi, I got a couple of guys out here.” Aiden reported. “Looks like they also have a few partners inside the building.”

He noticed the sound of music didn’t blare in the background. Where was Jordi, anyway? “ _Way ahead of ya, Pearce._ ” Jordi acknowledged, grunting slightly with the sound of shuffling in the background. “ _I caught a couple of them. They are also related to another case involving another client. Long story short, he had a debt to settle and couldn’t pay up. Met his end and now he is in the shitter. Literally._ ” The fixer continued rambling while setting up the men’s bodies in such a way that appeared to make it seem as if they were using the stalls but in reality they had been shot in the face.

“Wait, wait, wait. _One_ of them?” Aiden questioned. “What happened to the other one?”

“ _Oh, he had this really annoying look on his face_ ,” Jordi nagged. “ _And you know how I hate when they have annoying looks on their faces so I decided to take matters into my own hands._ ”

“Not sure how I feel about this many people around, Jordi.” Aiden muttered. “There might be more guys in there. Just be prepared.”

“ _I am always prepared._ ”

 

You were growing bored sitting by the bar while the others were people watching or in Candy’s case, man-watching. If that were even a word at all. You glanced down at your phone only to see a few notifications but no text back from Aiden which you were expecting the entire night. Anxiety was making you tense as you tried to understand what it was that made him fall quiet. Maybe you would have known if you asked him where you went wrong. It would have made more sense to ask him in person, that way he wouldn’t try to dodge the question. Forcing him to tell you the reason sounded selfish but him ignoring you only made you more worried.

You looked up from your phone only to see Aiden leaning against the pillar from the other side of the bar counter. Upon close inspection, this was not Aiden but instead one of the clubgoers simply wearing a snapback cap, socializing with friends. _I’m thinking about him too much._ You thought. _Now I’m seeing him. Aiden, what did I do wrong?_

A hand was placed firmly on your shoulder. You jumped from the sudden physical contact and turned to see Cat eager to include you into something. She wore a worried expression as she met your eyes.

“Are you okay?” she asked loudly, the music was drowning out her voice but you could hear her only slightly.

“I’m fine,” You told her. In truth, you were worried about Aiden but chose not to tell her. “Are you guys getting bored of people watching?”

“Nope, but Emily is.” Cat mused. “We’re not going to get anywhere just eyeballing like a bunch of idiots. We’re gonna dance and I thought you wanted to join us.”

“I can make do with that instead of sitting around all night.” You decided, getting up on your feet to join the others on the dancefloor. It was best to keep yourself busy instead of fretting over what you might have done to upset Aiden. You came to the conclusion that it might be the little girl who died in that accident. What her relationship to him is, you weren’t sure if she was his daughter or maybe a niece. Either way, it helped you somewhat understand why Aiden does what he does. Hopefully, you would be able to ask him when the time was right.

As you rejoined the girls and danced in your own little circle, the rhythm of the beat erasing away the stress that had been eating at you for days. With a swing of your hips, you occasionally bump into the female dancers as well as your friends. It was rather crowded for a week night, it seemed everyone else was running away from the same responsibilities called reality. One could kill time dancing the night away. You were having a great time dancing to a few of the songs until you grew tired and decided to take a break. You made sure to gesture at Cat to let her know you were going to sit. You approached the bar to grab a drink and sat by the bar counter, taking your time with the fruity alcoholic beverage until you felt your phone vibrating in your pocket. Perhaps, it was Aiden?

You quickly pulled out your phone to see your mom on the caller ID. Slightly disappointed, you almost answered until you remembered where you were. Drink in hand, you looked around thinking of some place quiet you could go to before answering the call. Then you remembered the bathroom was probably the best place. It was weird taking your drink with you but what with the society you live in, you had no choice. Unbeknownst to you, one of the male clubgoers had his eye on you. 

You stepped inside the ladies’ room, hearing the muffled sound of the bass resonating throughout the building. The sweet solitude of silence was peaceful for a change of pace. Then, you remembered why you went in here. The missed call notification appeared as you opened your phone and went to call your mother.

After two or three rings, she finally answered with an urgent sound in her voice.

“ _Oh, there you are! I’ve been trying to call you!_ ” Your mother exclaimed with an accusing tone. “ _I need help with something._ ”

“What is it?” You asked.

“ _How do I send an email?_ ”

Time and time again you had explained to her, showing her inside and out how to send an email the correct way. You specifically pointed out everything from composing an email all the way through sending it. It was a simple task and you were sure you taught her the basics, to some extent.

“ _I know how to find the name but how do I go about writing this letter?_ ” your mother wondered. “ _It’s a thank-you note, you remember Debbie from my work, right? She helped me out today and I just wanted to thank her._ ”

“Just write how ever you want to express your thanks,” you explained. “Like, ‘Debbie, thank you for helping me with… so and so’ or something like that. Just don’t make it too wordy. Make it simple and clean.”

“ _Not sure how I can do that…_ ” she began typing. “ _Let’s see…_ ”

You listened to the distant typing of the keyboard and the occasional clicking of the mouse. It was silent as you waited, taking a sip of your drink and setting it aside once you’ve finished it. A woman close to your age stepped into the restroom, meeting your gaze before flashing a smile to which you smiled back at her until she approached one of the vacant bathroom stalls.

“ _Okay, how’s this: ‘Dear Debbie, I am thankful for your help today and hope to return the favor in future endeavors. Best wishes, [M/A]._ ’” Your mother recited. “ _How’s that?_ ”

“It sounds promising.” You commented. “I hope it works out.”

“ _Okay, I’m going to send it…_ ” She goes quiet except for the click of the mouse. “ _Thanks, honey._ ”

“No problem.”

“How’s Aiden?” Your mother asked randomly.

“Oh, he’s fine… just doing his usual thing.” You replied. “Nothing interesting to report. I did talk to him this morning, though.”

“ _He’s still hanging in there, that’s good._ ” She agreed. “ _Are you two having any problems?_ ”

“No,” You laughed. “Why do you ask?”

The only problem between the two of you was the never ending internal war you had with your feelings and how you felt about Aiden. Describing him the way you did, made it clear you were falling in love with him and it wasn’t going to stop until it was physically painful to be away from him. You were in deep and there was no way to turn back but you were afraid of how he would feel. Telling him was better than keeping it a secret and even if he couldn’t accept at least you had nothing to hide… right?

You leaned against the bathroom sink, using one of your hands to support your back. Thinking of confessing to him, suddenly made the room spin in all angles and you felt your knees almost give in. It was scary to think of what he’d say. Would he laugh or kindly reject your feelings? It was different back in your college days, one night stands were something expected and you were the one who always left at daybreak. Something about Aiden drew you in. He came off as the strong, silent type shrouded in mystery. He had a sister but that was all you knew about him.

“ _No reason, I wanted to see how things were going with him._ ” Your mother sounded calm and she may have even shrugged. “ _Do you think he ever eats?_ ”

The sound of the toilet flushing could be heard in the stall from the opposite end of the room. You hoped your mom wouldn’t notice but from the looks of it, she most likely would. The woman from the stall stepped out to wash her hands on the sink farthest away from you.

“I’m sure he does like any other human.” You mused. “He seems well-fed.”

“ _Yeah, but all I see is him on the news reeking havoc somewhere._ ” She scoffed. “ _Why can’t they just take a candid photo of him eating at Quinkie’s?_ ”

“Mom, Aiden is not a celebrity!” You quipped. “No one would care about that.”

“ _Well, I would!_ ” Your mother argued. “ _At least, I know he’s eating._ ”

“Oh my god.” You rubbed your temple. “Mom, I need to go. I’ll talk to you soon.”

“ _Okay, goodnight._ ”

“‘Night, mom.”

You heard the sound of the dial tone before hanging up. Looking through your phone, you hoped to see a reply from Aiden but so far nothing. Sighing to yourself, you realize it was pointless waiting on him to give you a reason. 

“Mothers, huh?” The girl beside you sympathized, wiping her hands with a paper towel.

“Yeah.” You shook your head. “Sometimes I feel like _I’m_ the one babysitting her.”

“I second that response.” She agreed. “Good luck.”

“Thanks.” You said before she stepped out the bathroom and muttered to yourself. “I’m gonna need all that I can get right now. Aiden, you are a handful.”

A few other girls walked into the restroom before giving you a chance to step out and head back to your friends. On your way there, you spotted a woman who happened to be wobbling about, fiddling with her phone while leaning against a pillar for support. You weren’t sure what she was doing but perhaps she was texting a friend. Concern grew for her, thinking she might be trying to go home but standing outside alone in that condition in a place like this seemed ominous enough even with Aiden around. He couldn’t be everywhere at once; someone has to do it. You felt somewhat fine enough to walk so you waited until she moved.

The woman took a lot longer than expected. Because she was drunk, it was a lot harder operating anything in that state. After a moment, she simply stood waiting for about five minutes while occasionally looking over her phone. To make it seem like you weren’t doing anything suspicious, you pretended to look through your phone as well until she took a step forward, haphazardly walking through the aisle way while trying not to bump into the clubgoers crossing through her path to the main entrance. You kept a safe distance all while keeping an eye on her. Quietly, you stayed hidden behind the doors as you watched a car pull up to the front of the club to which the woman approached and opened the door, greeted with a laugh.

“Oh my god, you’re pretty fucked up!” A girl in the driver’s seat laughed as the woman stepped inside, her speech slurring to where she was incoherent to which the girl laughed even harder. From the way she was speaking, you assumed they may have been friends or sisters, maybe. It reminded you of the last time you and Cat had gotten drunk but you were completely wasted at the time to remember anything of that night.

As the woman stepped into the passenger seat, she dropped something as she made her way inside trying to comfortably sit while her friend had been telling her to close the door the entire time she was gathering the seat belt and finally did after sloppily clipping it before the car drove away.

You rushed outside to see what she dropped and found that it was her wallet upon closer inspection in your hands. The car speedily drove off down the street, too far to even shout after them. You looked on before glancing down at the pink clutch she so carelessly left behind. It looked new and well-taken care of. You peered inside to find numerous credit and debit cards, a handful of cash and a condom. A distinct pink color warmed your cheeks after realizing what it could possibly have been used for if she stayed a bit longer. You were mature enough not to be so flustered upon seeing unused rubbers in a drunk girl’s coin purse. The look on your face was enough to make Cat laugh, if only she could see you right now.

Almost, as if without warning, an arm snaked itself around your neck, putting you into a choke hold. You grunted in surprise, gasping for air until you realized you were being strangled and there was no one to help you. Come to think of it, the bouncer at the door was nowhere to be found. It wasn’t him… was it? Time was of the essence and this was your one and only chance at life and if this man was trying to kidnap you, you had to think fast. Aiden wasn’t always going to be there when you needed him, you knew this. Why is it that you wind up in this predicament after meeting him? This was the second time you were put in harm’s way. Was this god’s way of telling you how your relationship with Aiden would play out?

You were close to blacking out and you began to panic. No, this isn’t how it would end, not without a fight. You told yourself to remain calm, struggling was a lot harder on you with the man’s constrict grip on your neck. You squirmed to move away from him but he ruthlessly pulled you back in, unaware of your hands about to reach out and grab at his groin. You did this quickly and almost sloppily since it was your first time attempting this kind of self-defense, remembering what you learned online and putting it to use. You groped at his front, your nails inch deep squeezing as hard as you could before giving a good yank until the man yelped in pain. It was slightly unsuccessful seeing as how you doubled over, coughing, nursing your throat.

“Mother--!” He pulled you back, landing a punch on the side of your lip.

You dropped to the concrete hard, the impact left you stunned for a full second until you weakly tried to get up. The taste of iron fresh on your lip from where he struck you.

“You bitch!” The attacker cursed acidly, his voice practically hissing in your ear. “Be a good, little whore and come with me.”

“Fuck you.” You spat, glaring up at the man who nearly strangled you to death. It was a bad call to provoke him as he roughly grabbed your chin, his patience wearing thin.

“Why, you little…!”

“Nice night to be out, don’t you think?” A voice inquired from behind, seemingly calm in the tense situation before him.

The two of you turned to face the man whom the voice belonged to and saw the Asian man from earlier who was leaning against the doorway, arms crossed. From his appearance, he didn’t look the type to hang out at clubs but more like museums with fine wine and abstract artwork with no particular meaning. He looked clean, laidback with a hint of mischief about him. If it weren’t for Aiden, this suited man would have piqued your interest if he didn’t have an assumingly large ego. Perhaps the man only came to your aid so he could snake his way into your pants at the end of the night, leaving you with an uninterested afterthought.

“What are you doing…?” You asked, your voice lower than a whimper, wiping away the taste of blood from your lips.

“Well, sweetheart,” the suit began, walking over and stood right in front of you. “Since you asked so nicely, trying to save you from getting abducted.”

“This isn’t your business, man.” the man jeered, pissed that he was unsuccessful at having his way with you.

“Need I mention, how unmanly it is to punch a woman like that?” The suit asked. “When the lady says no, just back the fuck off.”

“The fuck are you going on about?” The man complained, annoyed at this complete stranger going off on a tangent.

“I’m talking about consent.” The other nagged. “Why not talk to her nicely and ask for her number like everyone else? She won’t fuck you if you fuck with her, do you get me?”

“I am really not in the mood to hear a lecture,” the man protested, glancing around in hopes that no one was watching. “Look, how much would it pay for you to look the other way?”

“I’m not as easy as the bouncer so I don’t come cheap.” The suit wasn’t too be swayed. He was right on one thing, though, your hunches about the missing bouncer were right. The man who attacked you wasn’t the bouncer at all, thankfully, but he still looked rather threatening even more so after putting his hands on you. He was about the same height as the suited man but had a broad physique that could potentially beat him down if he didn’t shut up. “If you can, I would like five grand in cash. Right now.”

“What?”

“Did I fucking stutter?” The suit asked, condescendingly. “Five grand or I shoot your dick, name your price. I don’t got all night.”

The man’s lower lip twitched in annoyance, perhaps thinking that punching him might shut him up. It was as if out of impulse, he swung his fist at him and was taken by surprise when the suit reflexively grabbed his fist whilst twisting his wrist in a way that an audible cracking sound can be heard then kicking him so he fell to his knees. The noise made you cringe, almost like you could feel it yourself. It didn’t help that the man cried out in pain. The suit then snapped his palm against his elbow gaining another scream as his bones were disjointed, making you turn away in disgust.

“It’d be easier if you just paid up or left the poor girl be.” The suit teased, stepping on his back. “Now, why not give her an apology before I break more than just your arm.”

The man sputtered, “I-I’m sorry..”

“What? Couldn’t hear ya, mumbles.” He said, pulling roughly at his arm earning another scream.

“That’s enough, stop! He’s in pain!” You instinctively shouted, his cries just made you feel terrible. Yeah, he saw it coming but the scene itself was an exaggeration. His apology was enough for you but fear grew by the second from the suited man in front you.

“Alright, alright.” The suit surrendered, lowering the man’s arm without a single bit of consideration for his injury. “The lady gets, what the lady wants.” He jumped, startled when the man’s body lay limp onto the concrete. It would appear the pain was excruciating to a point where it became unbearable and he fell unconscious. “Whoops. Guess I went a little overboard.”

“You think!?” You snapped, taking his hand as he helped you up.

“I don’t like to see a woman be mistreated like that,” He confessed. “Especially, if they’re not assigned to me.”

You turned to him in surprise. “Wait, what?”

“Huh?” He tilted his head.

“You just said…” You shook your head. “Uh, never mind.”

From the corner of your eye, a shadow could be seen moving out of the darkness and you quickly turned around only for Jordi to react to the human-like shadow who was actually Aiden, hiding his face behind a mask, carelessly pushing an unconscious man twice his size. Your heart stopped at the sight of him, any existing weight on your shoulders had taken off and you were ten times lighter like you could float away like a balloon in the wind sent to the stratosphere, unsure of where or when you’d ever land or perhaps your heart would pop if you had gone any further.

Simply seeing his face, released some hidden happiness you never knew you had. This is what love felt like, the overwhelming sensation of warmth in your chest, pumping through your heart and into your veins. You were falling harder and harder with each passing time he was near you, gleaming emeralds looking into your own made it hard to turn your gaze away from him. The unshaven facial hair was a bother but that was one of the qualities you admired about him. To feel his arms around you, wrapped in his protective embrace made up for the frightening experience you endured mere moments ago. To say his name would change everything over the course of one night. It felt intimate but you loved it all the same. How to tell him was easier said than done.

“Pearce! Glad you could join us!” The man exclaimed, happily. “What took you?”

Aiden said nothing, glancing down at the unconscious man at his feet then glared at him. “You’re cleaning that up.” He said, pointing at the man.

“You know it’s rude to point.” 

“I’m really not up for this sort of banter right now.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Jordi agreed. “Don’t worry, they’re going to my dumping place.”

Aiden removed his mask before meeting your eyes and he relaxed a little, approaching you casually as he always did. You grew worried that he would notice your busted lip and say something. But what could he do? It would heal in a matter of months but it made you so shy.

“Hi.” he greeted with a smile.

“H-Hey…” You said softly, avoiding his gaze.

He noticed your discomfort and gently lifted up your chin to see your face, then he frowned upon seeing the cut on your lower lip. “Did Jordi do this to you?”

“What? No!” You pointed to the unconscious man. “He did! He tried to… uhm…” You couldn’t finish your answer, thinking back on what could have happened if Jordi hadn’t showed up.

“It’s alright.” Aiden chided. “I’ll take you home if you want.”

“Not to be a bother in your little love scene but I’m gonna just deal with all this, alright?” Jordi pointed, moving his arms about in a circular motion as if making his point.

“Actually, there’s something I need to take care of first.” You mentioned, picking up the pink clutch you had dropped in the struggle with your potential kidnapper.

“What’s that?” asked Aiden.

“This girl drop this after she left,” you explained. “I wanted to give this back to her. I’m sure you can find her, right? Like you found me?”

Jordi overheard the conversation and stopped working mid-way. “Whoa, whoa, Pearce! What is this about finding someone?”

“I wanted to give this girl her wallet back as soon as possible--” You were cut off when Jordi suddenly grabbed the clutch and looked at her possessions. He made a face when he spotted the condom made you wonder what he was thinking until he took it out.

Jordi laughed. “Someone was having plans tonight.” 

“Jordi, what are you doing?” wondered Aiden as he watched the suit open the wrapper, tossing the rubber aside and it dropped onto the unconscious man’s face.

“Just gonna fuck with some girl’s mind,” Jordi elaborated, putting the open wrapper into the pocket where a few bills were placed. “It’s a harmless prank, you’ll appreciate it tomorrow.”

“But, I don’t know her.” You admitted.

“Mind if I keep this then? I can track her down for you if you want.” Jordi shrugged, nonchalantly. “It won’t be hard considering her license has her full name, picture and address on it.”

“Don’t do anything stupid.” Aiden warned, watching as Jordi handed you back the clutch and picked up the man’s body to continue what he originally planning on doing.

“Pearce, I’m full-grown man,” Jordi argued, shoving the man inside the back of the van. “I know what I’m doing and if I think it’s stupid, I’ll think of something else. I’m a fixer, not a child.”

“You sure act like it sometimes.” Aiden scowled. 

“You know, I can’t tell if you’re making fun of me or if you’re simply being sarcastic.”

“It sounds a little bit of both to me.” You jested.

“That girl is a keeper.” Jordi nodded, giving you praise. “Don’t lose that one. Not many can come up with good jokes like that. What did you say your name was?”

“I’m [Name].” You introduced yourself, shaking his hand.

“Now that I think about it, were you that same girl on the phone the other day?” He tilted his head, scratching his chin in thought.

“I-I really have no idea what you’re talking about.” You stuttered, avoiding his gaze.

 

“No, no,” the fixer shook his head. “I recognize your voice. I hope I didn’t startle you.”

“Oh, no!” You waved your hands dismissively. “I was just surprised is all. Didn’t think we’d meet so soon.”

“Well, it was nice having to chat but business beckons.” He waves at you and nods to Aiden before pulling out a pistol with a silencer protruding over the barrel, shooting the other two men directly through the skull without much of a hint of remorse in his step.

You instinctively gasped, not used to seeing someone get shot on-sight while unconscious. This was public execution. Can he do that?

Aiden rolled his eyes. “You had to do that _here_?”

“Why don’t you drop your girlfriend home and let me do my job, hm?”

Aiden grunted in annoyance but did as he was instructed. “I’ll take you home then.” he informed you.

“Sure. I’ll just let my friends know I’m leaving.”

 

===

 

Cat was looking through her friends’ snapchats while making a few posts of her own and going back and forth through various social media applications when a message popped up on the screen. It was shown part-way, having her open her messages when she saw it came from you. She read the text, all while wondering where you had gone this entire time.

_sorry cat, i gotta head home. i’m not feeling well right now. see u tmw??_

She told Emily she would be back and headed to the main entrance. She hid when she saw your back turned to her, facing a man who appeared to be the vigilante. There was no mistaking it, anyone would recognize him when he was wearing something like that. But what was he doing here? She wondered. It was then that he did something quite unexpected that made her pleasantly surprised. He slipped off his coat from his shoulders, placing it around you to keep you warm. It was a cold night, after all.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go in and say goodbye in person?” Aiden insisted. He knew your friends would get worried if you left without saying goodbye. A simple text message was nice but it wasn’t the same as physical goodbyes.

“I already sent a text,” you said, pulling his coat closer towards your chest. “It would be too hard to say anything in there, anyway.”

“If you say so.” Aiden didn’t argue. This was another quality of Aiden that impressed you. He was so composed and well-mannered, you felt your chest warming up again and tried to ignore the heat rising to your cheeks. “Ready to go?”

Having heard a fair amount of the conversation, Cat snuck back into the club while replying to the message in the process. She was careful not to get spotted by you or the vigilante on her way inside. It wouldn’t have mattered anyway, she was only concerned for your safety. The look in his eyes wore honesty and maybe something else? She trusted you would get home in his care. Perhaps Aiden liked you in more ways than one.

“Yeah.” You replied, glancing over at Jordi who was “cleaning” up the mess he made. He paid no attention to either of you as he stepped into the van, turning the ignition on.

Aiden placed a hand on your shoulder, turning your attention to him while he escorted you to a nearby car several feet away. “Don’t worry about him, he does what he wants.”

He never ceased to melt your heart by opening the door for you every time. You raised a brow and looked up at him once you stepped inside. “You must do this to all the girls you meet, don’t you?” You teased.

“Only to the ones that interest me.” Aiden smiled, closing the door before walking over to the driver’s side. The soft purr of the engine made itself known once he got the car started.

“Aww… Am I really that important to you, Aiden?” You asked in a flirtatious tone, hoping to get him flustered. It would be cute to see him break character by blushing.

“I wouldn’t be doing all this for you if you weren’t.” Aiden admitted happily. You noticed he seemed to be more open about his feelings towards you. He may very well be too friendly but you wanted to cling to the false hope that he liked you more than just a friend.

You looked towards the street ahead, sitting in the comfortable sound of silence with Aiden’s presence as your only company. The best kind of company you could ask for. It would be a while until another opportunity like this came up, it was best to savor the moment now than fantasize about it tomorrow. From a different perspective, you either seem lonely or desperate. Hopefully, the latter. Your ideals seemed to fit that of a hopeless romantic and yet...

After spacing out for a while, you turned to look at Aiden who was staring back at you. It wasn’t unwelcome and it wasn’t uncomfortable either. You have only ridden in a car with Aiden twice only it didn’t feel as intimate as this. He looked as if he wanted to say something and you were compelled to ask what it was. 

The car from behind lightly honked on the horn when the light turned green. He looked back at the road and hit the gas, the roar of the engine giving a soothing sound as Aiden drove straight ahead. It was a long drive but it didn’t feel at all awkward but gave room for conversation.

“So…” You pondered, letting the word linger as you thought of what to say next. “Did you have something you want to say to me?”

“What do you mean?”

“You were looking at me like you wanted to tell me something.” You observed. There was a pregnant pause after what seemed like a whole minute, you felt it was pointless trying to get through to him after he dismissed your last text. The second you opened your mouth to speak to give him a piece of your mind, he responds with a distinct sadness in his voice. It made sense of why he spoke in this manner and you understood.

“Lena.” He replied softly. “My niece was killed in an accident and it was my fault she died. I got involved in something I shouldn’t have, it costed her her life. Now I’m just searching for answers.”

“Aiden, I’m so sorry,” you said, quietly. “I had no idea.”

He reached out, gently caressing your cheek with the side of his fingers. You leaned into his touch, the warmth was nice against your skin and the two of you met eyes once again. You had to stop yourself from wanting to throw your arms around him and pulling him into a kiss if he kept looking at you like that. It was because of him you were caught in these situations now but because of him, you wouldn’t be able to go home at all. Maybe all those things your mother said to that man back at the restaurant were true, you wouldn’t be able to sleep let alone go home if he didn’t save you those few times. 

It broke your heart seeing him so crestfallen. The tone of his voice sounded gloomy, too, like a part of him died entirely. How would it feel to bring that happiness back? Lena was dead, it was the harsh reality Aiden had to face every day, keeping others alive for the sake of one he couldn’t save. There was something you wanted to say to him, to help cheer him up even a little but you couldn’t find the words.

“It’s alright,” he sighed. “I should have known what was going to happen.”

He glanced down and said nothing before facing the road. It was random but you noticed your hand felt warmer and your lap somewhat occupied. You gazed down and blushed upon seeing you hold Aiden’s hand. You were _holding_ Aiden’s _hand_. These two words echoed in your consciousness and you immediately grew flustered by such intimate contact and he didn’t mind at all. Was this okay? Well, it was okay if he didn’t move or say anything about it. Did he find comfort in this? Maybe it was fine but you didn’t want it to seem like you were rushing into things. You gently slipped your hand away, as much as it pained you to do so..

“I-I wasn’t…” You stammered. “It was just--I, uhm… sorry.” Now it just felt awkward.

“It’s fine.” He chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind holding hands with you some time.”

“Are you teasing me?” You accused him, lightly punching his arm. “I can’t tell if you’re being serious.”

It was dark in the car but you could tell he was smirking. “Let’s keep it this way.” 

Because of that shit-eating grin you wanted to smack him but he was merely joking without making advances. Still, you worry about how he felt when he was alone. Going through that whole ordeal must have hit him so hard, compromising his relationship with his family. Just by listening to him, Lena must have been a very important person in his life for him to go through all ends just to find the one responsible. Somehow, you wanted to reach out to him but there was nothing you can do.

“Have you ever thought about driving through the bridge while it was moving up?” You wondered. “I mean, your phone can hack stuff. Have you tried doing it at least once?”

“I’ve done it before,” Aiden replied. “Only if I need to make a clean getaway.”

“Can you do it again?” You insisted, leaning closer to him with excitement gleaming in your eyes. “Like, in a movie?”

“It sounds dangerous.” He warned. “I can try it if you want. Just once, though.”

“Really?”

“But don’t blame me if we land in the water, [Name].”

You found it hard to keep a straight face after hearing him say something like that. “I trust you, Aiden.”

Aiden raised a brow. “Because I’m the vigilante?”

“Because I like you.” You mused.

“Good.” He acknowledged happily. “I like you, too.”

Everything around you immediately stopped and you were struck with a mini-heart attack. He may have said it casually but the thought of him liking you in some way felt pleasant. It may have even been the highlight of your night, thankful that your night ended far better than expected.

The bridge was up ahead, you looked to Aiden who was about ready to accelerate on the gas, phone in hand. He seemed to be focused on driving swiftly as you had wanted. It was too late for second thoughts now that the vehicle was inching closer. No police cars were sighted so Aiden driving speedily without any interruptions would help this reckless idea of yours work. Even if there were police cars present, he’d shake them off one way or another. Chicago was filled with back alleys and detours, he would probably be able to do this in his sleep. But with you in the car, the risk of you getting caught in an accident might double if Aiden wasn’t careful. You decided to set that thought aside and concentrate on getting home in one piece.

The incessant, loud ringing of the bridge slowly departing could be heard. It seems Aiden had hacked the bridge before you could even see him do it. The cars nearby pulled to an immediate stop, confused and annoyed honking could be heard around you. He wasn’t joking when he said he would do it. You just hope he wouldn’t accidentally drive you both into the water. You weren’t in the mood to go swimming at this hour. You said yourself that you trusted him and you did. Aiden was the vigilante, there wasn’t anything he hadn’t done before. 

The car drove nimbly down an empty lane, towards the bridge that was rising about halfway into the air. You had to brace yourself as he weaved in and out of different lanes, eventually reaching the end of the bridge. The vehicle flew over the bridge in mid-air, somehow moving forward from the speed propelling it to the other side. You wonder what the looks on everyone’s faces were when they witnessed a car fly through the air while the bridge was in motion. If only you could take a picture of the view below you. The ocean gleamed under the city lights, you noticed people on the lower level of the plazas below were looking up, eyes following the car as they were stunned to see something as random as this. They knew bizarre things were happening around the city like sudden blackouts and broken streetlights but to see this occurring again seemed to take them by surprise. These instances were a commonplace but nobody knew when it would happen. It seemed to take them off-guard to see it come and go as it did.

The vehicle landed perfectly onto the other side with a heavy thud, swerving left and right as it made contact with the ground before it. Aiden straightened out the vehicle, whipping out his phone to hack the bridge back in its place. He quickly pulled the car to the oncoming lane before it had a chance to collide with the car on the opposite lane. He received a heavy honk from the driver who was shouting something vulgar to Aiden who simply ignored it.

For a second, you almost forgot where you were, still overwhelmed by the amazing feat that happened moments ago. Probably not as impressive to anyone else but it felt risky to pull a stunt like that again. This was one thing to cross off your bucket list, amongst other things.

 

===

 

Much to your dismay, Aiden insisted on escorting you to your place. He wanted to make sure you came home safely. He understood how hard it was putting up with sketchy people at this time of the night, you couldn’t even trust some of the homeless either. It was nice of him to lend you his coat for the time being. Having the vigilante close to you gave you a sense of security but also made you slightly paranoid if your neighbors spotted you. Most of the tenants supported Aiden and his deeds. If there were any way the police wanted to track him down, they’d look the other way. If the tenants assumed you two were dating would be a plus. Your neighbor, Rose, from downstairs was quite the chatterbox. Luckily for you, nobody seemed to be out at this time. No room for gossip, perfect.

You shrugged off his jacket before handing it back to him to which he slipped it back on. “Aiden, as much as I appreciate you dropping me home, I don’t see a reason for you to follow me all the way here.” You were flustered the entire way, worried that someone would catch you with Aiden. Not that it was a bad thing, you just weren’t sure how to explain yourself to them. The vigilante didn’t look the type to be looking for a date when he was the most wanted criminal in all of Chicago.

“I’m not complaining, though.” You added, going through your pockets for your keys. “Thanks for dropping me off, Aiden. Did you want to come in?”

“No, I’m alright,” He simply answered, slipping his hands in his pockets. “Just wanted to make sure you got home safely.”

Aiden’s gaze was fixated on your earlobe, moving down to your neck. He was curious of how you’d react if he kissed the skin. He watched as a few strands slid down your shoulder before you brushed a finger over your hair, tucking it behind your ear. It was an unusual feeling of wanting to pull you close to feel your lips against his own, the warmth of your body pressed against him with your arms around his neck. He could only imagine how soft your skin felt if he could graze his hands over every inch of you.

Almost instinctively, Aiden reached out and placed his hand over the door, slightly startling you. You abruptly turned to see him merely inches towards your face, enough you can feel his warm breath leaving goosebumps trailing down your neck. You leaned against the door, the distance between you and him were closing in. It grew silent between the both of you, uncertainty and hesitation shared in a single gaze. 

With his free hand, Aiden caressed his thumb over your cheek and leaned in for a kiss. You eased, your shoulders tensed before moving closer with your hands trailing up his chest and resting on his shoulders. He then pulled away slowly, it was almost painful for you to feel the kiss ending abruptly. Your hands on either side of his face moved to pull the collar of his sweater to pull him into another kiss. His lips were soft and warm, leaving you to assume this wasn’t his first kiss and neither was it yours but it felt different this time around. He snaked his arms around your waist, holding you close to further indulge the taste of your lips.

You slowly pulled away to breathe before locking lips once more. You moaned softly into the kiss as his hand touched your thigh. You tug at his hair, the intensity of physical contact grew further as the kiss got more heated. You eagerly start to wonder what he was like in bed. Was he rough, gentle or a bit of both? To glimpse at his lean, nude physique shadowing over you in bed was too vivid in your mind and made it harder for you to keep quiet as these walls weren’t soundproof.

Your breathing got heavy as Aiden moved from your lips to your neck. It was as if he knew exactly where to please you with the touch of his hand. You struggled to hold back a moan that nearly escaped as he kissed your collarbone. You closed your eyes, craning your neck upwards to allow him more access.

“Aiden…” you huffed. Your whole body had gotten warmer from his touch, almost pleading for him to take you against the door despite how much noise you’d make and the public indecency this would cause you. Including the compromising position you happened to be in. It was worth the risk if it was for Aiden.

The sudden vibration of a phone went off, ruining the mood as you were so close to letting Aiden inside your place. Your eyes flickered open at the first sound of muffled rumbling that sounded awfully close. “Is that mine or…?”

Aiden exhaled sharply. “It’s mine.” He sounded almost disappointed. The moment was cockblocked by an incoming call. He nearly pulled away but kept his hold on you when he realized your legs were around his waist.

“Oh.” You chuckled nervously before detaching yourself from him. “I better get going.” You straightened up your appearance by fixing your hair and clothes. “Thanks again for dropping me home, Aiden.”

Aiden seemed too focused on his phone to hear you the first time. He appeared to be fixated on something on the screen. You stared him down with concern and waited for the appropriate time to interrupt his train of thought. You glanced at your surroundings to double-check if anyone was watching. You turned your attention back to Aiden then reached out to gently shake his shoulder.

He quickly turned to look up at you and frowned. “Sorry, I need to take care of this. I’ll see you soon?”

You said nothing and nodded, watching him walk away. “Take care, Aiden.”

“Good night, [Name].” 

He seemed worried about something. He wasn’t really paying you any mind which might signify its urgency. Although, it was a drag not having him in your bed but it was fun while it lasted. You sighed, unlocking the door to your apartment and slipped inside. 

 

It was a new day and you were still hungover from last night. You were drunk but not that drunk. You were sitting outside of a café closer to your place. You recall a few things, Jordi, the bridge and Aiden… you felt your face grow hot at the thought of almost having sex with him against your apartment door. Hopefully, you didn’t say anything strange to him. Not that he would mention it but Aiden seemed the type nice enough to go through with it and say nothing of it.

“Hey!” A cheery voice interrupted your train of thought. You tried to rid the burning blush on your cheeks when you spotted Jordi standing at your table with coffee in hand.

“Hi.” You greeted him. Without an invitation, he sat down across from you with a huge grin on his face. “What’s that look for?”

“You know that girl who left her wallet the other day?” Jordi asked you and without waiting for an answer, he added. “Well, she’s actually here right now and I’m gonna introduce myself.”

You stifled a laugh. “You’re joking, right?”

“Oh, no,” He shook his head. “I’m dead serious. It’s just a harmless prank, don’t worry about it. How drunk was she, anyway?”

“I’d say completely wasted from what I remember.” You guessed. 

“Perfect.” He stood up, pulling out the pink clutch from his coat pocket. “Watch this.”

You watched as he approached a table with a group of friends enjoying a laugh and some coffee. One of them noticed Jordi coming towards them, all eyes now glued to him when he began speaking to one of the females of the group. You can hear the conversation clearly once they quieted down.

“You’re Sandra, right?” Jordi asked a brunette, who looked surprisingly confused.

“Do I know you?” Sandra asked, brows furrowed as she looked to her friends for some kind of answer before looking back at Jordi.

“Not at all, sweetie.” He replied, casually. “Just thought I’d return something of yours.” He handed back her pink wallet with a smile on his face. “You forgot this in the men’s room last night. Maybe next time we can head back to my place and do it there. I had fun.” He then waved to her friends before walking back to your table.

You turned to see Sandra’s friends wondering and giggling at what he could mean until she opened the clutch, revealing the open condom wrapper and a roar of laughter erupted among her friends. You weren’t sure if she was upset or just flustered, you couldn’t see her face but you could only imagine what expression she must be making from the reaction of her friends.

“Up top.” Jordi gestured a high-five your direction and you gladly accepted. It was amusing to watch but was that really necessary? This must be what Aiden had to deal with so he let him be.

“Well, I’m gonna get going now.” Jordi informed you, picking up his coffee.

“You’re leaving already?”

“Yup,” he said. “I’ve got a new assignment and I don’t wanna be late. See ya.”

When he was no longer within earshot, you wondered out loud. “What the hell goes on through that guy’s head?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really enjoying this so far. Right now I'm trying to take my time on things because I have loads of other fics in mind that I still need to work on. But in the near future I'm considering writing some Aiden/Poppy fics. Two come to mind, one of which is smut. So idk which one I want to write first. lol
> 
> I ship them so hard. Sorry not sorry.

**Author's Note:**

> I know I'm 4 years late into the Watch Dogs fandom but I finally got a ps4 and junk just to play Overwatch but I've been playing Watch Dogs it's like a long process because I like to goof off in free roam and do side missions. Not to mention, I'm working 6 days a week so I'm really busy with adulting.
> 
> This one is a series of one-shots. My other fic Tales from Overwatch (Borderlands/Overwatch crossfic) is currently on hiatus. I should be back to that soon enough. I don't get how the first Watch Dogs game got so much hate compared to the second one. They're both really good games but everyone has their own opinion.
> 
> I hope you liked reading this as much as I loved writing it. I wrote this on a whim and took some time with editing. There weren't enough AidenxReader fics so this one is my little contribution. :)
> 
> I planned to make this a five-chapter one-shot series but I'm still thinking about it.
> 
> P.S. The two siblings in the fic are my old high school OCs but I still love them so they get an honorable mention in my writing.


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